Category Archives: Foreign
Knowing What We Know Now
Megyn Kelly asked Jeb Bush if, knowing what we know now, he would have supported the invasion of Iraq. It would be a great question to ask Hillary Clinton since, as a Senator, she voted for the war. Alas, Hillary is above questioning so Megyn’s question is only being asked of Republican candidates.
Nobody asked him, but Professor Victor Davis Hansen answers the question here.
It’s a good question. Most of the Senate Democrats who voted for the the war quickly turned against it. Many Republicans and public opinion soon headed for the exits too.
With everybody against him, President Bush finally fired Defense Secretary Rumsfeld, poured more troops into Iraq, and put General David Petraeus in charge. The NYT published MoveOn.org’s ad calling him General Betray Us. Hillary called him a liar.
As it turned out the Petraeus plan worked. In 2010 Joe Biden proclaimed events in Iraq the Obama administration’s finest hour. President Obama withdrew U.S. forces as he had promised.
Islamic man-burning barbarians soon filled the vacuum. Obama called them al Qaeda’s JV team. On Sunday the JV team routed the Iraqi defenders in Ramadi – 70 miles from Baghdad.
At present the last line of defense appears to be Shiite fighters from Iran.
Knowing what we know now, who in their right mind would answer yes?
Bill has Bills to Pay
I don’t know how the Clintons get by. They were dead broke when they left the White House. Bill says he has no choice but keep taking half million dollar speaking gigs to pay the bills.
When Hillary was Secretary of State the Russians bought 20% of the US uranium supply. Investors in the company involved gave millions to the Clinton Foundation and hired Bill for one of those $500,000 speeches. If she becomes president maybe they can buy the other 80%.
That’s a reset.
Clinton Talk not Cheap
Actually, for Hillary Clinton talk is cheap compared to Bill. The Washington Post found he earned over $100 million in speaking fees between 2001 and 2013. $26 million of that came from companies that contribute to the Clinton Foundation.
Could Bill really be vice president? Fact Check calls it a “constitutional conundrum”.
Ayatollah Advice
Ayatollah Khamenei recently held a fire and brimstone revival in Iran. He said there would be no nuclear deal unless sanctions are lifted immediately.The Supreme Leader then presided over a rousing chorus of Death to America chants.
Half Baked Near Treachery
Forty-six Republican senators have signed a letter written by freshman Senator Tom Cotton to the leaders of Iran. The letter explains that the nuclear deal President Obama is negotiating is non-binding and won’t survive after he leaves office.
For that breech of etiquette foreign policy expert Leslie Gelb, in a Daily Beast column, says “Republicans hate Obama more than a nuclear Iran”. He calls the letter an act of “near treachery”. (On the other hand, in January he demanded that Obama fire his staff and meet with Senate leaders.)
Fellow foreign policy expert, David Ignatius, says the Senators’ letter is “Grossly irresponsible”.
Michael Gerson thinks the letter is a “half baked” scheme brought on by Obama cutting the Senate out of the process.
Mark Thiessen says it’s not a big deal because it’s all happened before – and he was part of it.
Carl M. Cannon thinks calling the Senators traitors is “beyond Orwellian”.
And Molly Hemingway, in The Federalist, complete with a photo of veteran Tom Cotton holding a kitten while on military duty, calls the whole over-reaction a “media smear”.
