Iraq War

Eisenhower And Reagan Commitment To Internationalism Being Rejected By Donald Trump And “America First” Extremism!

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The Republican Party before World War II was dominated by America First Isolationism, led by Ohio Senator Robert Taft, “Mr Conservative Republican”, and Michigan Senator Arthur Vandenberg.

However, Vandenberg abandoned isolationism with the beginning of the Cold War with the Soviet Union after World War II, but with Taft still pursuing isolationism.

But in 1952, when Taft sought the Presidency, he was stopped by World War II hero Dwight D. Eisenhower, who was able to shift American foreign policy to support of the international community, including support of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and commitment to fighting Communist expansion around the world.

The majority of Republicans who pursued bipartisanship in foreign policy continued, and reached a new peak under Ronald Reagan in the 1980s, and with the Presidencies of George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush.

However, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan provoked the emergence of a strong opposition to the policy of interventionism, and also led to those who started to see the Russian Federation that followed the downfall of the Soviet Union in 1991 as not a nation to be seen as “the enemy”.

Donald Trump became the leader of the attack on the interventionist past of the Republican Party from 1952-2016. Now, many Republicans in Congress back Trump on his isolationist bent, including his Vice Presidential running mate, JD Vance.

This is a dangerous trend, and cozying up to Vladimir Putin and the Russian Federation with their war in Ukraine is an alarm bell in the middle of the night, as accepting authoritarianism is a trend toward Fascism!

Loss Of A True Statesman: Florida Governor And Senator Bob Graham!

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The state of Florida and the nation has lost a true statesman, former Governor and Senator Bob Graham, who passed away at the age of 87.

Graham was a class act as Florida Governor from 1979-1987, and as a US Senator from 1987-2005.

A leader who was of Presidential stature, he was on the short list for Vice President for Bill Clinton in 1992 and Al Gore in 2000, and briefly sought the Presidency himself in 2004.

He was a very effective governor of the Sunshine state, a true star when compared to recent Republican governors Rick Scott and Ron DeSantis. His emphasis was on promotion of the environment and advancement of education.

Graham was Chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee from 2001-2003, and worked to oppose the Iraq War under George W. Bush as based on faulty intelligence.

A half brother with the same last name, Phil Graham, came to own the Washington Post.

Florida has not been the same politically since Democrats such as Bob Graham left office, and as Republicans took over state government and domination of Congressional seats.

Senator Joseph Lieberman Passing Reminds Us Of His Significant Role In American History

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Former Connecticut Senator Joseph Lieberman passed away yesterday at the age of 82, tragically as the result of complications from a fall.

This sad news reminds us of his significant role in American history and politics.

A comparatively conservative Senator for a Democrat, specifically on foreign policy, while quite liberal on most matters of domestic policy, Lieberman became the first Jewish candidate on a national Presidential ticket as the Vice Presidential nominee for Al Gore in the Presidential Election of 2000.

Coming to the Senate after defeating liberal Republican Senator Lowell Weicker in 1988, and backed by conservative advocate William F. Buckley, Jr, who called Lieberman his “favorite Democrat”, he lost the Democratic nomination for his seat in 2006, but ran as an Independent and defeated his Democratic and Republican opponents, serving his fourth and last term until 2012, when he retired.

Lieberman was closely associated with Republican Senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham as “hawks” on the Iraq War, and McCain considered him for the Vice Presidency in 2008, before choosing the disastrous Alaska Governor Sarah Palin.

Lieberman was always highly controversial, but also remembered as very principled and a major factor in American politics for more than a generation.

For a person such as this author who sees himself as “progressive”, Lieberman often irritated with his overly hawkish views on foreign policy, and he did not show adequate support for either Barack Obama or Joe Biden, including engaging in the NO LABELS movement, which seems, fortunately, to be going nowhere in the upcoming presidential election.

A Generation Since The Iraq War, Which Was Another “Big Lie”, As The Presidential Election Of 2020!

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The Iraq War, which led to the downfall and death of Saddam Hussein, and the rise of Iranian influence over Iraq, was another “Big Lie”, based on false intelligence, and causing the death of an estimated 270,000 Iraqi civilians, and 4,600 US military personnel.

Just as Iraq was a “Big Lie”, so is the continued contention that the Presidential Election of 2020 was “stolen” by Joe Biden, and denied to Donald Trump!

The cost in the national debt due to the Iraq War was at least $2 trillion, and no WMD’s (Weapons of Mass Destruction) were found.

It is a permanent stain on President George W. Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney, and all of the leading figures around the Bush Presidency, with the indication that there was no concerted plan for an extended civil war that dragged on for eight long years, and undermined US policy in the Middle East.

This author and blogger recalls participating in a symposium early in 2003, and believing that such an intervention was based on false pretenses and a mistake, so what followed is seen as a major human tragedy of massive proportions.

Republicans And Veterans: Total Hypocrisy And Disgrace!

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The Republican Party loves to wave the flag and talk about “patriotism”, but they are regularly against veterans receiving health care for their sacrifices since September 11.

They just, out of spite, worked yesterday against aid to soldiers exposed to toxic pits and other dangers in war zones, including in Afghanistan and Iraq after September 11.

It is shocking to see even so called “better” Republicans, such as Mitt Romney and Ben Sasse joining with outgoing Senators, such as Rob Portman, Pat Toomey, Richard Burr, Roy Blunt, and Richard Shelby, and all of the usual obnoxious Senators (including Rand Paul, Ted Cruz, Tom Cotton, Josh Hawley, Rick Scott, and others) to vote against veterans’ health aid!

Only 8 Republican Senators supported the legislation yesterday, including Susan Collins, Shelley Moore Capito, Marco Rubio, Jerry Moran, Chuck Grassley, Lindsey Graham, and two others!

Joe Biden Arguably Has Faced The Worst Set Of Crises Other Than Lincoln And FDR!

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Abraham Lincoln faced the breakup of the Union and the Civil War in his Presidency from 1861-1865.

Franklin D. Roosevelt faced the Great Depression, the growing threat of Fascism and Nazism, and World War II, from 1933-1945.

Other than Lincoln and FDR, the question arises which other Presidents faced crises on a level as dangerous and challenging as those two Presidents.

One could say George Washington facing the challenge of making the Constitution work, and the nation able to survive as a republic from 1789-1797.

One could say Harry Truman, facing the challenge of sudden elevation to the Presidency in a time when World War II was not yet resolved, and having to deal with the threat of the Soviet Union during the Cold War years from 1945-1953.

One could say John F. Kennedy, facing the threat of the Soviet Union, including the Berlin Crisis and the Cuban Missile Crisis, which dominated his time in the Presidency, from 1961-1963.

One could say George W. Bush, facing the challenge of the terrorist attack on September 11, 2001, and the dual wars fought during his Presidency in Afghanistan and Iraq, and the Great Recession which developed in his last year in office, from 2001-2009.

One could also say Barack Obama, facing the challenge of the Great Recession, the worst economic downturn since the 1930s, and the constant domestic resistance from the right wing Tea Party Movement, and the growing extremism of the Republican Party, from 2009-2017.

But one could also argue that Joe Biden, facing the COVID 19 Pandemic; the growing epidemic of mass murders by firearms by domestic terrorists and mentally disturbed people; and the threat of nuclear war in the midst of the greatest foreign policy crisis (The Russia-Ukraine War) since the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962, is the greatest challenge and crisis other than Lincoln and FDR!

Joe Biden Becomes A Wartime President

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Joe Biden has become a wartime President, alongside James Madison, James K. Polk, Abraham Lincoln, William McKinley, Woodrow Wilson, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Harry Truman, Lyndon B. Johnson, Richard Nixon, George H. W. Bush, and George W. Bush.

At this point, he looks more like Lincoln, Wilson, FDR, Truman, and George H. W. Bush than the rest of the group.

If fortune goes against him, he might look more like Madison, who saw the nation divide during the War Of 1812 and the White House being burned; like Polk, who caused a split over slavery expansion during the Mexican War that helped to lead to the Civil War a decade later; like LBJ, who divided the nation over Vietnam just as he promoted the Great Society; like Nixon, who continued an unpopular war in Vietnam that ended up in a tragic loss; and like George W. Bush, who started two wars based on poor tactics and planning, and dominated by lies and deception in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Likelihood Of Russian Attack On NATO Ally Poland Increased By Mass Of Ukranian Refugees Going There!

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The Russian invasion of Ukraine is likely to lead to a Russian attack on NATO ally Poland, increased by the mass of Ukranian refugees going there, more than any other NATO nation.

Additionally, Poland has proposed sending its fighter jets to Ukraine, with the US replacing those jets for Poland, although, at this point, the US has spoken out against such an action, or creating a “No Fly” zone.

To this author and blogger, it seems inevitable that what President Biden and the leaders of the NATO nations fear and hope to avoid, a general continental war in Europe, what is being called World War III, is likely to occur.

Russia has committed war crimes and atrocities, which shake the emotions of all decent people, and at the same time, Russian military forces have been bogged down on the way to Kiev, the capital of Ukraine, and other locations as well.

The Ukranians have shown their commitment to democracy, and have displayed their courage, and Vladimir Putin is in trouble, as his own population is slowly learning, despite censorship, of the military disaster that is occurring, with Russia losing more troops in two weeks than the US lost in the many years of the Iraq War.

It seems to this author and blogger that the “die is cast”, and soon America will be engaged in World War III, not by choice, but by necessity, as in World War I in 1917 and World War II in 1941!

Comparing Kamala Harris To Mike Pence, Dick Cheney, Dan Quayle, Spiro Agnew!

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Kamala Harris has been Vice President for nearly a year, and has faced brutal criticism and attacks, and suggestions by some that she resign, because she has not been assertive in the role of Vice President.

Of course, these suggestions come from Fox News Channel anchors Tucker Carlson, Sean Hannity, and Laura Ingraham, who are actively involved in attempting a coverup of the events of January 6, 2021, even though they were stunned by the events of that day, and tried to reach Donald Trump to express their dismay.

It is insulting that conservative supporters of the January 6 Insurrection have the gall to attack Kamala Harris, when the major issue is that she is a woman, and of mixed African and Asian American heritage, as her father is from Jamaican origin and her mother of Asian Indian origin.

Who are the critics turning to as models?

Is it Mike Pence, who refused to speak up at all to Donald Trump for four years, but at least had the guts to uphold the Electoral College vote for Joe Biden on January 6, facing the threat of being hanged by rioters? That is his only redeeming quality.

Or is it Dick Cheney, who while qualified by experience, was a dangerous, out of control Vice President, under George W. Bush, who enriched himself by America’s engagement in two wars in Afghanistan and Iraq through leadership of Haliburton, and endorsed the use of torture against war prisoners?

Or is it Dan Quayle, who made everyone nervous for four years about the health of George H. W. Bush, as Quayle demonstrated how dumb and clueless he was?

Or was it Spiro Agnew, who resigned from office as a felon, after nearly five years a heartbeat away from the Presidency under Richard Nixon?

The only truly reputable Republican Vice President in the past half century was George H. W. Bush under Ronald Reagan! Although it must be said that the abbreviated Vice Presidency of Nelson Rockefeller under Gerald Ford was also decent!

Meanwhile, Democrats could be proud of their Vice Presidents—Walter Mondale under Jimmy Carter; Al Gore under Bill Clinton; and Joe BIden under Barack Obama!

Kamala Harris is in the tradition of decency and dignity of Mondale, Gore, and Biden, and will do a fine job over the next three years, with her excellent qualification as former San Francisco District Attorney, California Attorney General, and US Senator!

Adam Kinzinger Not Running For Reelection, But Should Begin A Presidential Campaign For 2024

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This author and blogger is not in agreement with Illinois Congressman Adam Kinzinger on most issues, as he is a conservative in his views.

But Adam Kinzinger is an honorable man, with courage, guts, and principle, and has demonstrated it by the reality that he is one of a very small brand of Republicans in Congress who has voted to impeach Donald Trump, and has agreed to join the January 6, 2021 House Committee investigating the US Capitol Insurrection, and Donald Trump’s role in that tragedy!

His congressional district has been wiped out by reapportionment and gerrymandering in the Democratic dominated state of Illinois, but this should not stop him from running for President.

He has had 12 years in Congress by the time he retires, and has served in the US Airforce as a Lieutenant Colonel rank, and was engaged in both the Iraq War and Afghanistan War, so his credentials are top notch!

He is a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, an important credential for anyone considering running for President.

Kinzinger needs to challenge Donald Trump or his lackeys, who bow to him, such as Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, Texas Governor Greg Abbott, Texas Senator Ted Cruz, Arkansas Senator Tom Cotton, Kentucky Senator Rand Paul, Missouri Senator Josh Hawley, and innumerable others who kowtow to Donald Trump, and promote the “Big Lie”, that Trump won the Presidential Election of 2020.