Just when I think I’ve heard it all, I read that Secretary of State John Kerry told CBS’s Face the Nation that the chaos of the 2016 U.S. presidential election “is an embarrassment to our country” as he reflected on the anti-Muslim sentiments of the candidates and the growing concerns of world leaders. Continue reading
Iran
Trump supporters – are you happy now?
This pullout from a recent comic strip panel by Gary Trudeau says it all.
Yes, I know, you’ve had it with Washington. You helped give the GOP the majority in the Senate, and they didn’t follow through with promises. Along came Donald Trump and you liked what he was saying; political correctness be damned.
I hope you’re happy now, because it appears there’s no turning back. Trump has been allowed to bully his way to several primary victories and two digit leads in most of the state primaries ahead. Continue reading
Medals awarded for humiliating America
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei presents a medal to one of the commanders involved in the capture of American sailors in the Straits of Hormuz. (Khamenei.ir)
Yesterday we learned that Iran’s Ayatollah Ali Khamenei presented medals to members of the Revolutionary Guard who took part in the humiliation of America with the “capture” of our sailors in the Straits of Hormuz. Continue reading
A cautionary note on business deals with Iran
When I read the headline, “Iran Does Billions in Business in Europe,” in Tuesday morning’s Wall Street Journal, of course I was reminded of those same billions we released as part of the flawed nuclear deal fashioned by the Obama administration.
(Cartoon courtesy Glenn Foden.)
In addition to an account of spending with European companies, there was a mention of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani’s side visit to the Vatican.
The talking heads on TV were musing that perhaps it meant that Iran was finally preparing to become a member of the global community. No chance. Continue reading
Capture of our sailors again points to our military weakness abroad
(Cartoon courtesy of Michael Ramirez, IBD)
I hope you weren’t among those so grateful for Iran’s quick release of our sailors and their boats that you dismiss the fact that it again pointed to America’s weakness abroad.
Pictures of our sailors on their knees with their hands on their heads were broadcast around the world with quotes by an Iranian Revolutionary Guard general saying our Marines were “crying,” and “admitted humbly our power and might.” Continue reading
John Kerry, negotiator extraordinaire
There he was this weekend, Secretary of State John Kerry, touting the Paris agreement on global emissions reduction he negotiated for the United States; the same John Kerry who negotiated the nuclear deal with Iran.
Master negotiator John Kerry touted his Paris agreement on carbon emissions reduction this weekend. (nypost.com)
Understandably, Kerry spent most of his time defending the lack of any provision for enforcing the “pledged” reductions by the 185 countries, saying that “If there had been a penalty, we wouldn’t have gotten agreement. So it has to be voluntary. We got the best deal we could.” Continue reading
Hillary Clinton’s naivete. Part 2
In my Aug. 21, post, “Did Hillary Clinton’s naiveté unintentionally tip off Benghazi attackers?” you may recall my asking rhetorically, how did she carry out the normal day to day business of secretary of state not knowing what was and wasn’t classified, regardless if it was marked as such or not.
(Cartoon courtesy of cleveland.com)
We now know that some 400 documents provided in the sporadic State Department dump were later classified. They contained information on the Iran nuclear discussions, spy satellites and drone strikes. Does anyone believe that Hillary Clinton had no idea these documents were classified? And as I stated in August, even her itinerary should have been considered classified.
“The Clinton team contends that these emails were not stamped classified until after the fact,” writes Kimberly Strassel in the Wall Street Journal, “But intelligence experts note many were ‘born’ classified – that is, the nature of the information required that they be handled as classified from the start.” My point, but better stated. Continue reading
Remember the “outsider” who proved Obama wrong?
“The Cold War’s been over for 20 years.” – President Obama, 2012 Debate
That was President Obama’s snarky, arrogant response to Mitt Romney’s belief that Russia was the biggest geopolitical threat facing America. “When it comes to our foreign policy, you seem to want to import the foreign policies of the 1980s …” he added.
President Obama mocked Mitt Romney for his stance on Russia during the 2012 debates. ( museumofuncutfunk.com/AP Al Goldman)
Of course, we know that while warning Americans about Russian President Vladimir Putin’s intentions to reassert his power, particularly over Ukraine, Romney did not dismiss the threat of Al Qaeda and Iran.
And remember when Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin was mocked during the 2008 campaign when she said, “After the Russian army invaded the nation of Georgia, Senator Obama’s reaction was one of indecision and moral equivalence, the kind of response that would only encourage Russia’s Putin to invade Ukraine.”
“This is a far-fetched scenario,” wrote Blake Hounshell, then the editor of the elite Foreign Policy magazine, as he dismissed Palin’s statement as “strange.” Continue reading
No better time for the GOP to use the nuclear option
“Americans by a significant margin oppose Obama’s nuclear capitulation to Iran. The GOP is in the majority in both houses. Yet the Stupid Party still gets snookered.” – Investor’s Business Daily
I know … I know … I was critical of Sen. Harry Reid’s (D-NV) use of the nuclear option in the Senate when he was majority leader, and, yes, I was supportive of Sen. Mitch McConnell’s decision to return “the world’s greatest deliberative body” to regular order.
(Editorial cartoon courtesy zerohedge.com)
The free world, however, is facing a serious juncture in the realm of foreign policy on the agreement with Iran, and nobody seems to be taking it seriously. Columnist Charles Krauthammer believes, “No international agreement in a generation matches this one in strategic significance and geopolitical gravity.” Continue reading
Hillary Clinton favored continued enrichment by Iran
Well, well, well … today we learned that it was Hillary Clinton who opened the door to accepting a change in U.S. policy that would allow Iran to continue to produce nuclear fuel.
Hillary Clinton and her foreign policy aide Jake Sullivan photographed during a White House visit. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)
After an unproductive secret meeting between Clinton’s foreign policy aide Jake Sullivan and Iranian diplomats in Oman in July 2012, and in a series of meetings in Washington over the following six months, Clinton and Obama concluded that we would have to let Iran continue to enrich uranium at small levels if an agreement was to succeed.
Very interesting, since it was Clinton who, during the 2008 campaign, called Obama naïve for believing he could directly negotiate with Iran’s regime. Continue reading