Foreign Policy

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And she wants to be president, Part 8

If Hillary Clinton wants to be president, you sure wouldn’t know it by listening to what she has to say at her $300 thousand-a-pop speaking engagements.

Hillary (AP)

Presidential wannabe Hillary Clinton says we should respect, understand and empathize with our enemy. (APphoto)

At Georgetown University on Wednesday, Clinton spoke on the use of every possible tool in what she terms “Smart Power,” including “showing respect for one’s enemies, trying to understand, and insofar as is psychologically possible, empathize with their perspective and point of view …”  Media supporters were quick in their attempt to provide cover for her, insisting her remark was off the cuff.  Not so. A viewing of the speech shows her referring to her script.

There’s no record of her utilizing “Smart Power” with the terrorists who, for five months, warned her of an attack on U.S. assets in Benghazi.  Nor did she meet with the Internet video maker who she insisted be jailed as the perpetrator of the attack. Continue reading →

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The Left is in a hurry to bury Benghazi

Dead Americans

These four dedicated Americans lost their lives in the Benghazi attack. Hillary Clinton had five months of warnings and refused to provide increased security. The left wants to sweep it all under the rug.

“Benghazi debunked,” read the headline over a Washington Post editorial board piece on Saturday.  “All that wasted noise over Benghazi attack,” declared Rem Reider in Sunday’s USA Today.

Both accounts, triggered by the release of the House Intelligence Committee report on Benghazi, were designed to put to bed any attempt to place blame with the Obama administration, including then Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. The president’s failure to act decisively following the attack, and Clinton’s failure to provide proper security for the ambassador and other Americans prior to the  Sept. 11, 2012 assault, are still in question.

The Washington Post criticized Republicans for “advancing a series of bizarre conspiracy theories intended to besmirch the Obama administration.”

“For the past three years,” wrote Reider, “the right has worked feverishly to turn Benghazi into a major scandal, a cudgel with which to batter President Obama and former secretary of state Hillary Rodham Clinton.” Continue reading →

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Put it in writing, Mr. President

Each year, the Speaker of the House of Representatives extends an invitation to the president to present his State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress.

I find it ironic that the  purpose of the presentation is to allow the president to outline his legislative agenda, for which he asks Congress’ approval.

If ever there was a time for the Speaker to ask the president to submit his January report in writing, it is now.  Speaker John Boehner should respond to President Obama’s arrogant, open rebuke of Congress, whether it is his stonewalling Congressional investigating committees or the recent go-it-alone decision on immigration.

supreme court

President Obama rudely chastised the Supreme Court for its decision on Citizens’ United during his 2010 State of the Union Address. Note Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner smiling and applauding at left. (latimesblogs.latimes.com)

And let’s not forget how the president used his 2010 address to chastise the Supreme Court over the Citizens’ United decision.  The rude statement served to spur Democrats to intimidate the IRS into targeting conservative groups seeking tax exemption.

I don’t expect this to happen.  The GOP is too skiddish.  Remember how they got blamed for the government shutdown?  Standing up for your principles these days is interpreted as being “mean-spirited.” Continue reading →

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Know when it’s time to resign

“He (Panetta) is a guy who has had a long and storied career in Washington and has really served his country well. And it is kind of sad that in its twilight he’s done such a dishonorable thing by – at a time – by going after the president that he served at a time of a lot of different instabilities around the world.”

Bill Burton (reurters.com)

Former Obama spokesman Bill Burton was called upon to put down Leon Panetta. (Reuters.com)

 One would think the Obama administration could have provided someone with a bit of gravitas to appear on CNN to support the president amidst the latest attacks in Leon Panetta’s new book. The quote above, however, comes from Bill Burton, a former Obama spokesman, who left the West Wing more than three years ago.  Some say he left because he wasn’t picked to replaced former Press Secretary Robert Gibbs

While I am certainly not an admirer of Burton and his usual “shoot from the hip” remarks about Republicans, I must admit I agree with the first part of his statement about Panetta’s service. As I have previously written, however, I believe cabinet members, staffers and military officers, who disagree with their commander-in-chief’s positions, should do the honorable thing and resign.

The individual need not hang out all the dirty laundry in his resignation statement, but it shouldn’t be an “I’m retiring to spend more time with my family” cop-out either. It should be a clear statement that he/she opposes the president’s position on – subject – and, as a matter of integrity, I believe the president  deserves to fill my position with someone who fully supports him.

I’ve been following the political scene long enough to realize that most administration appointees simply hold down their desks until the next administration, hoping they’ll be selected for the next plum position.  And, there are those generals in the Pentagon looking for that next star, next chief-of-staff job, or joint chief slot. Continue reading →

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Leoni no Clinton in “Madame Secretary” role

I have generally avoided television and big screen depictions of political Washington D.C. in the past like “West Wing” and the recent addition, “Scandal,” but tease footage of an attack on our embassy in Yemen promoting the last segment of “Madame Secretary,” piqued my curiosity.  I confess. I watched it.

Tea Leoni, Tim Daly (zap2it.com)

Tea Leoni does a credible job as secretary of state in the new CBS series, Madame Secretary. She’s shown here with Zeljko Ivanek, who is perfectly cast as the President’s chief of staff. (zp2it.com)

I have been reading how it was part of Hollywood’s plan to pump up Hillary Clinton’s role as secretary of state, but the Wall Street Journal’s Dorothy Rabinowitz gave it a pretty good review.

The show’s Executive Producer Lori McCreary said the inspiration for the show came from Morgan Freeman, who after watching Hillary Clinton during the Benghazi hearings, called McCreary saying, “What does she (Hillary) go home to, what does she talk about?”

I would have suggested that he might want to read Edward Klein’s book, Blood Fued, to get a pretty accurate picture. Continue reading →

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Netanyahu gets it

“Militant Islam’s ambition to dominate the world seems mad, but so too did the global ambitions of another fanatic ideology that swept into power eight decades ago.  The Nazi’s believed in a master race.  The militant Islamists believe in a master faith. They just disagree who among them will be the master of the master faith.”

Benjamin Netanyau (AP photo. Seth Wenig)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, “It’s one thing to confront militant Islamists on pickup trucks with Kalashnikov rifles. It’s another thing to confront militant Islamists armed with weapons of mass destruction.” (AP photo/Seth Wenig)

So said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, speaking to an audience of less than half of the UN representation this morning.  I’m highlighting it here because I’m sure many of you didn’t hear it.

“There is one place where that could happen,” he said, “the Islamic State of Iran. For 35 years, Iran has relentlessly pursued the global mission which was set forth by its founding ruler, Ayatollah Khomeini, in these words. ‘We will export our revolution to the entire world until the cry –there is no god but Allah – will echo throughout the world over.’ “

Netanyahu also reminded the audience that it was Gen. Mohammed Ali Jafari of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard who said, “Our imam did not limit the Islamic revolution to this country; our duty is to prepare the way for an Islamic world government. “ Continue reading →

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Obama: Making it up as he goes

“Obama’s incompetence is truly dangerous,” read the headline on a Washington Times op-ed written by Joseph Curl, I recently ran across while going through my tickler file as I prepared to write this post.

Coffe cup salute (usatoday.com)

The commander-in-chief shows outright disrespect for the military as he salutes with a Styrofoam cup in his saluting hand. (usatoday.com)

Recalling the bumbling of Jackie Gleason on the old “Honeymooners” show, “incompetence is funny, sometimes hilarious,” wrote Curl. “But in real life, incompetence can be dangerous, even life-threatening,” he added as he drew an analogy of a real-life Homer Simpson in charge of safety at a nuclear power plant.”

Curl reviewed the president’s long list of recent missteps in the Middle East beginning with his “impotent ‘red-line’ threat” that Syrian President Bashar Assad’s use of chemical weapons would prompt “enormous consequences.” Nothing. Continue reading →

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An unusual request for help at the UN

  “In a summer marked by instability in the Middle East and Eastern Europe, I know the world also took notice of the small American city of Ferguson, Missouri – where a young man was killed, and a community was divided.”

Unbelievably, those were the words of President Obama as he brought to a close his address to the United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday intended to seek support for the war against – my words – Islamic extremists.

“So yes, we have our own racial tensions,” he went on to say, “And like every country, we have our racial and ethnic tensions.”

Can you believe it? Comparing the Ferguson shooting to the beheading and mass killings by ISIL, al Qaeda and other Islamist extremist spin-offs?

Courtesy elektroka

(Poster courtesy elektroka)

Nine paragraphs into his speech, he finally gets to the point. “There is much to be done to meet the tests of this moment. But today I’d like to focus on two defining questions at the root of many our challenges – whether the nations here today will be able to renew the purpose of the UN’s founding (he’s dreaming); and whether we will come together to reject the cancer of extremism (not likely).”  He left them with this less than memorable quote, “For America, the choice is clear.  We choose hope over fear.”  “Hope,” where have we heard that before?

We are facing the most barbaric, evil terrorists we could have imagined, and our president is talking “hope?”

I was also taken aback by an earlier statement in his speech. “I have made it clear that America will not base our entire foreign policy on reacting to terrorism. Rather, we have waged a focused campaign against al Qaeda and its associated forces – taking out their leaders, and denying them the safe havens they rely upon.”  Then he said, “At the same time, we have reaffirmed that the United States is not and never will be at war with Islam.  Islam teaches peace.  Muslims the world over aspire to live with dignity and a sense of justice.  And when it comes to America and Islam, there is no us and them – there is only us, because millions of Muslim Americans are part of the fabric of our country.”  Really, Mr. President?  How do you think Americans would respond to a poll on that? Continue reading →

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And she wants to be president, Part 6

Just four days ago I stated that the deaths of Ambassador Chris Stevens, Sean Smith, Tyrone Woods and Glen Doherty can be attributed to Hillary Clinton’s decision to cut back security at the Benghazi mission compound. (See my post Lack of security in Benghazi points to Clinton, 9/13/14.) Two more events tend to support my contention that confidants aided in the cover-up.

An after-hours document scrubbing at State

attkisson (realclearpolitics)

Sharyl Attkisson interviewed former state department official Raymond Maxwell about an after-hours document scrubbing. (realclearpolitics.com)

maxwell (whatamimissinghere.com)

Former state department official Raymond Maxwell told Sharyl Attkisson about an after-hours document scrubbing. (whatamimissisnghere.com)

Two days after that post, Sharyl Attkisson broke a story of a Sunday after-hours document scrubbing in the basement operations center at the State Department. Her source was former Deputy Assistant Secretary Raymond Maxwell, who was a leader in the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs, charged with collecting e-mails and documents relevant to the Benghazi probe. He was a 21-year Foreign Service veteran at State.

Hearing about the document scrubbing effort, he decided to look into it. Upon arrival he observed boxes and stacks of documents and the presence of one of Clinton’s top advisors. She told Maxwell, “We are to go through these stacks and pull out anything that might put anybody in the front office or the seventh floor in a bad light.”  The seventh floor was where Clinton and her principal advisors were located. Continue reading →

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Lack of security in Benghazi points to Clinton

On March 28, 2012, U. S. Ambassador to Libya Gene Cretz sent a cable to then Secretary of State Hillary Clinton requesting additional security assets. The response, bearing Clinton’s signature, while acknowledging his request, instead articulates a plan to scale back security for the U. S. Mission in Libya, including the Benghazi Mission. – Source: INTERIM PROGRESS REPORT for the Members of the Republican Conference on the Events Surrounding the September 11, 2012 Terrorist Attack in Benghazi, Libya

Gowdy (LIBERTYNEWS.COM)

Rep. Trey Gowdy will chair the House select committee on Benghazi that gets underway on Wednesday. (LibertyNews.com)

In the two years following the attack, Congressional hearings and media reports have, for the most part, concentrated on the night of the attack. They questioned whether we could have dispatched air assets in time, if there was a stand-down ordered and if so who ordered it?

While answers to those questions are important, my effort since that fateful night has focused on the failure to provide proper security despite five months of warnings. I firmly believe Hillary Clinton is clearly responsible for placing Ambassador Chris Stevens and other Americans in jeopardy not only that night but in the preceding months. Continue reading →