In the wars she has fought, America has often allied with regimes that represented the antithesis of the cause for which we were fighting. In our Revolutionary War for freedom and independence from the tyrant King of England, our indispensable ally was the King of France. In World War I, …
“Neo-isolationism is the direct product of foolish globalism. … Compared to people who thought they could run the universe, or at least the globe, I am neo-isolationist and proud of it.” Those are not the words of an old America Firster, but the declaration of that icon of the liberal …
Prussian Chancellor Otto von Bismarck is sometimes credited with the proverb, “God has a special providence for fools, drunks and the United States of America.” Observing the unfolding of the Syrian crisis, the Iron Chancellor was an insightful man. In August, we were hours away from missile strikes on Syria …
This summer produced a triumph of American patriotism. A grassroots coalition arose to demand Congress veto any war on Syria. Congress got the message and was ready to vote no to war, when President Obama seized upon Vladimir Putin’s offer to work together to disarm Syria of chemical weapons. The …
“The worst mistake of my presidency,” said Ronald Reagan of his decision to put Marines into the middle of Lebanon’s civil war, where 241 died in a suicide bombing of their barracks. And if Barack Obama plunges into Syria’s civil war, it could consume his presidency, even as Iraq consumed …
In that year of happy memory, 1972, George McGovern, the Democratic nominee, declared he would chop defense by fully one-third. A friendly congressman was persuaded to ask Secretary of Defense Melvin Laird to expatiate on what this might mean. The Pentagon replied the Sixth Fleet might have to be pulled …
“It would be unconscionable to go to war if we haven’t had such discussions,” said Nicholas Burns, under secretary of state in the Bush administration, of reports the Obama White House has agreed to one-on-one talks with Tehran over its nuclear program. Sen. Lindsey Graham dissented Sunday: “I think the …
Usually, not always, the peace party wins. Gen. Sherman’s burning of Atlanta and March to the Sea ensured Abraham Lincoln’s re-election in 1864. William McKinley, with his triumph over Spain and determination to pacify and hold the Philippines, easily held off William Jennings Bryan in 1900. Yet Woodrow Wilson won …
You must be logged in to post a comment.