Z on Liz Cheney and Debra Burlingame

One of my favorite bloggers took a trip to hear Liz Cheney and Debra Burlingame talk about national security. And when Z takes a trip the results are going to be an A delivery of info. Here summary . . .

Both women are formidable and as patriotic and informed as two women can be. And they're very worried for our country.

Ah, and speaking of fomidable, patriotic and informed women: I recommend that you can read Z's entire post here:

Liz Cheney and Debra Burlingame

Gates: There Is No Policy To Stop Iran From Nukes

According to a "classified document" with more leaks than a Cuban refugee escape vessel, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates is warning that the U.S. has no policy to curb Iran's rapid move toward nuclear weapons. I wonder how many Obama supporters still believe you can thwart terrorist objects through understanding and apology.

Those familiar with the memo, speaking on the condition of anonymity, reveal that:

Mr. Gates wrote of a variety of concerns, including the absence of an effective strategy should Iran choose the course that many government and outside analysts consider likely: Iran could assemble all the major parts it needs for a nuclear weapon — fuel, designs and detonators — but stop just short of assembling a fully operational weapon.

In that case, Iran could remain a signatory of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty while becoming what strategists call a “virtual” nuclear weapons state.

Like the Clinton administration, who practiced an appeasement policy that actually went so far as to supply North Korea with a nuclear reactor, the Obama team is counting on passivity to stop pugnacity, but the world does not work that way.

Equally frightening is that fact that a memo this explosive was leaked to the press (not that the mainstream media will cover it, given its obvious reflection on Obama). I'd suggest that from here on the administration place highly classified documents like this under the same security measures as Barack Obama's academic records.

Obama's Top Ten Foreign Policy Debacles

Lately we've been focusing on Barack Obama's domestic policy disasters, you know, seizure of public corporations, government control of health policy, soaring unemplyment rate . . . the whole redistribution of wealth/sacrifice our children thing. But leave it to the Brits to remind us of what the mainstream American media continues to ignore: what a dangerous and diluded foreign policy "The Chosen One" has. (wait, are we finally past everyone sans the sanity suppressed Obots thinking of Obama as "The Chosen One"?)

Nile Gardiner of the UK Telegraph has compiled a list of Barack Obama's Top Ten foreign policy follies in his first year of presidency. Fist of all, hats off to Mr. Gardiner for keeping the list to a mere ten -- yoeman's effort, that. And second, please don't read these until 30 minutes after eating if you want to avoid the bends.

Here is a list of the ten biggest foreign policy follies of Barack Obama’s first year in office. I’ve tried to make the list inclusive of all corners of the world, ranging from Tehran to Tokyo to Khartoum, and frankly could easily have expanded it to a top 20 or even top 30 list. There are plenty to choose from, including some of the most cringe worthy moments in modern American history.

1. Surrendering to Russia over Missile Defence
The White House’s betrayal of US allies in eastern and central Europe by reneging on the deal to establish Third Site missile defences sent a clear signal that Washington was more concerned about appeasing Moscow than defending its friends. It symbolized all that is wrong with Obama’s foreign policy – including the willingness to curry favour with brutal enemies while giving the boot to some of America’s
closest partners.

2. Appeasing the Mullahs of Iran
If Barack Obama makes a New Year’s resolution, I hope it will be that he stops appeasing Tehran. The White House’s strategy of engagement with Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has been nothing short of a spectacular failure. While Obama has been busy emulating the European Union’s dismal Common Foreign and Security Policy and sending polite video messages, the Mullahs and their puppets have been busy advancing their nuclear weapons programme, enriching uranium, supplying arms to the Taliban, capturing British sailors, test-firing long-range missiles, threatening the annihilation of Israel, and killing pro-democracy protestors.

3. Ending the War on Terror
Not only did Barack Obama order the closure of the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay within hours of becoming president, but he also embarked upon ending the entire War on Terror, which was swiftly renamed an Overseas Contingency Operation. Nearly a year later the threat from al-Qaeda remains just as great, if not greater, but President Obama refuses to describe the battle in terms of a global war, and balks at identifying the enemy – Islamist terrorists. At the same time he has given the enemy a huge propaganda victory by endlessly castigating the Bush administration for supposedly “torturing” terrorist suspects, and apologizing for the
counter-terror strategy of the previous US government.

4. Announcing a Surge while Declaring an Exit
There can be no doubt that the three months of dithering by President Obama over whether to deploy more forces to Afghanistan was highly damaging to the United States, and sowed considerable uncertainty within the NATO alliance. When Obama finally made an announcement in December to send an additional 30,000 troops to the battlefield, a huge step in the right direction, his decision was immediately undercut by the simultaneous announcement of an exit timetable, starting in 18 months. It is hard to imagine Churchill or Roosevelt declaring in the middle of the Second World War that they would fight the Nazis for another year and a half, and then start withdrawing their forces on the grounds of cost.

5. Apologising to France for America’s “Arrogance”
Barack Obama’s Strasbourg speech will go down in history as one of the most embarrassing moments ever for a US president on foreign soil. As I wrote earlier, “The President of the most powerful nation on earth traveled to France to deliver a grovelling, massive mea culpa for US foreign policy, including the War on Terror. Utter humiliation for America on European soil in front of a largely French and German audience who bitterly opposed the liberation of Iraq – not even Jacques Chirac could have dreamt it up.”

6. Giving DVDs to the British Prime Minister
I’m no fan of Gordon Brown, but the treatment of the Prime Minister at the hands of the White House on his visit to Washington in March was an appalling humiliation for Great Britain. The PM was received as though he were the leader of a third world banana republic rather than America’s closest ally, denied an official press conference and even a dinner. To add insult to injury, Brown was packed off with 25 discount DVDs ranging from Toy Story to The Wizard of Oz, which couldn’t even be played in Britain.

7. Siding with Marxists in Honduras
The Obama administration has certainly been consistent in its strategy of cuddling up to America’s enemies while kicking its friends. True to form the White House and State Department rushed to condemn the constitutional removal of left-wing, America-hating, Hugo-Chavez-backed despot Manuel Zelaya from power in Honduras, and his temporary replacement with pro-American Speaker of the House Robert Micheletti. Whatever happened to the good old days when the United States actually fought against Marxist tyrants in Latin America and backed anti-communists?

8. Bowing to Emperors and Kings
The last time I checked, Barack Obama was not a subject of imperial Japan, but his bow before Emperor Akihito was a scene straight out of the 1930s. A simple handshake with the descendent of Emperor Hirohito would have sufficed, but the president opted for a full-blown bow when the two met in Tokyo in November. It is one thing to pay respect to a monarch, but quite another for an American president to prostrate himself and his nation before a foreign leader. Needless to say, eyebrows were raised not only in America but across Asia as well. This was far from an isolated incident. Obama did exactly the same when he met with King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia at the G-20 in April.

9. Embracing Genocidal Killers in Sudan
I’ve included this in the list because it illustrates the extraordinary lengths to which the Obama administration will go to appease the most evil tyrannies on the face of the earth. In October Obama extended the hand of friendship to the brutal regime in Khartoum led by Omar Hassan al-Bashir, responsible for the murder of hundreds of thousands in Darfur, offering to lift sanctions if there were “concrete steps in a new direction”. The moral bankruptcy of this approach was summed up by Obama’s hugely controversial special envoy to Sudan, retired Air Force Major General J. Scott Gration:“We’ve got to think about giving out cookies. Kids, countries — they react to gold stars, smiley faces, handshakes, agreements, talk, engagement.”

10. Throwing Churchill out of The White House
Barack Obama’s decision to throw a bust of Sir Winston Churchill out of the Oval Office within days of taking power set the tone for his foreign policy. It sent a clear signal that the president cared little about the Anglo-American Special Relationship and the transatlantic alliance in general. It spoke volumes about Obama’s disdain for Britain, a nation that he has never mentioned in a major policy speech, as well as his scorn for the kind of powerful, assertive leadership that Churchill embodied.

H/T to Great Satan's Girlfriend: 44 So Far

Iraq Inspires Iran

George W. Bush had a lot wrong when it comes to Iraq, but he was right about one thing: freedom inspires freedom. The ink-stained fingers of Iraqi voters demonstrated once and for all that freedom can be won for a price. And unfortunately for the Iranian government, the students in their country have access to the internet. They've seen those fingers. They've read about the sacrifice. They've decided to act.

I can't help but wonder if those courageous protesters are looking for support from the United States. They know that they have a rogue government bent on nuclear armament. And I'm sure they are also aware the the real power in Iran is held by religious fundamentalists, but they are acting where they can -- and they are not doing it in a vacuum. The protesters are using cell phones to post their plight on YouTube and other sites across the net for the world to see . . . for America to see. What do they expect in the way of support?

Well, if they're looking for support from Obama I'm afraid they'll have a long wait. Yesterday, taking a few minutes away from his tour de farce concerning health care, Obama declared that he "cannot be silent" concerning what's happening in Iran (apparently drunk on self-love and forgetting that he has been silent for three days). Oh, and how did The Chosen One break his silence? Did he call for freedom? Did he decry oppression? Did he give so much as an ear wiggle of support for the protesters trying to disrupt one of the two remaining axis of evil?

Of course not. If he said that they may not like us.

News flash to the President: the extremists running that country will never like us. We are "The Great Satan" and it is through stirring hatred toward America that they maintain power. So, while the president (who can't seem to get his fill of bashing Israel over Gaza) weakly acknowledges the news in Iran, refusing to condemn the actions of their government, those with courage stand up at risk to their lives.

Barack Obama's First 100 Days

If you want an objective view of Obama's first 100 days all you have to do is turn to MSNBC. And then ask his wife how he's doing.

All sarcasm aside (until sometime around paragraph 4), when it comes to assessments of Obama's first hundred days I couldn't wait to read MSNBC's certain to slather piece on the Prez's early report card. And I wasn't disappointed with Chuck Todd's take:

Right now, the needs of the country and the ambitions of the president are combining to create a reality that Obama will go down in history as one spectacular commander in chief.

Of course, one thing that seems to set Obama part from his recent predecessors is his ability to keep an inner calm about tough issues.

True, Todd admits it could be a spectacular success or failure . . . but should he be employing the word "spectacular" after 100 days with its connotations of, well, all things things that are spectacular? Let me just take a moment to explore the spectacular job that the calmly zen-enriched Obama has done.

The Economy: He has already spent 25%-30% of our total national wealth (based on GNP). And he still plans to deliver tax cuts for 95% of Americans when more than 40% of Americans don't pay any taxes -- in Obamath you may call cabbage handouts to that 40% who don't pay taxes "tax cuts," but for the rest of us it's called a massive increase to welfare. I wonder what the welfare-reforming Bill Clinton thinks about that plan?

Domestic Issues: He signed an executive order that he (and the main stream media) claimed lifted the ban on embryonic stem cell research that Bush had in place, which is interesting when you consider that Bush was the first President to actually fund embryonic stem cell research, he just restricted it (which is quite sensible when you consider that embryonic stem cells have produced roughly the same number of cures as embryonic nasal drainage . . . but don't let that get in the way of a left-wing agenda). Obama then "saved" the auto industry by obliterating the line defining the government's role and forcing the president of GM to resign, then taking away all of Chrysler's bargaining power by giving them a 30-day deadline to sell themselves to an Italian company. Oh, and he's also stepped in to have the Feds control the banks, which, given the government's financial integrity is like having Michael Moore oversee the packaging of Nilla Wafers (which truly are "always in season")

Side question: Does signing an executive order to start funding foreign abortions when your country is deep in deficit spending fall under "Domestic Issues" or "Foreign Policy"?

Foreign Policy: As promised, Obama has engaged both our allies and our enemies. He's bowed to the Saudi king while his wife broke all decorum by back-slapping the Queen of England (who didn't rate the now famous Obama bow). He gave embarrassing gifts to allies, sent out White House memos with the wrong leader's name on them, Gave Russia a gift that was translated incorrectly, told the world that America invented the automobile and rescheduled an international meeting so he didn't miss some personal time.

Of course, Obama has reached out to those who despise America. And how has his "we only want you to like us" approach worked thus far? North Korea has launched missile tests and announced that they will pop something nuclear soon. Russia turned some weapons toward Poland. Iran told the world they are in the final stage of becoming a nuclear power (threat). And the Taliban has taken to announcing their attacks.

I could go on, but I'm suddenly too depressed. It may take 100 years to recover from these first 100 days, and there's more of this to come. But I'd love to hear your take and some of the gems that I've lost the will to write about tonight.

When Naivety Becomes Noxious

Obama's naivety toward foreign policy was kinda cute during the presidential campaign. With big floppy ears flapping he bounced from sofa to sofa just waiting for a tail-wagger scruff from an adoring autocrat. Wasn't he precious? But the cute naive puppy has become the big dawg and his empowering ass-sniffs with murderous dictators is no longer amusing.

Obama's latest lapping of rapid rape hound Hugo Chavez proves just how dangerous the new Prez's foreign policy antics can be. Not only does he allow himself to be photographed accepting the America-bashing book, Open Veins of Latin America (making the book an instant international bestseller), but he also gave the dictator worldwide policy credibility with his doting ear-to-ear grin . . . and that, dear reader, is quite a grin.

As former Reagan diplomat Otto Reich put it in Newsmax:

“I think it’s very unfortunate. I don’t think President Obama really understands, perhaps out of lack of experience in international affairs, the importance of symbolism . . . But in Venezuela Hugo Chavez said last night this is the greatest triumph in Venezuelan diplomacy ever. Because what he is trying to do is to portray this as an endorsement of his policies, which is called 21st century socialism but which is really just retread 20th-century fascism.”

Naivety loses it's cuteness when the yapping bark of ignorance becomes a noxious bite.

Obama Called Us Arrogant

One thing I've notice is that when an American calls America something negative like arrogant, obnoxious or all hick and stupid, it's implied in their comment that they're not talking about themselves. They're talking about those "other Americans" who aren't quite as savvy or sophisticated.

Well, as reported by the UK Telegraph, while hanging out in France our President decided to court their acceptance by throwing his country under the bus like he did his grandmother during the campaign.

President Obama said the US had “failed to appreciate Europe’s leading role in the world."

“Instead of celebrating your dynamic union and seeking to partner with you to meet common challenges, there have been times where America has shown arrogance and been dismissive, even derisive.”

His speech in Strasbourg went further than any United States president in history in criticising his own country’s action while standing on foreign soil.

Show of hands: how many of you are shocked that Obama "went further than any United States president in history in criticising his own country’s action while standing on foreign soil"? Anyone? Anyone?

Like a little schoolboy trying to impress the redheaded girl who colors her teeth with markers, Barack Obama stood on French land and told them that the rest of us have been arrogant, dismissive and even derisive toward our allies, but he has arisen to change that with his ambrosial wisdom. This from the guy who countered Britain's priceless gifts in remembrance of the HMS Resolute with a DVD set and then dropped an iPod on her royal majesty (just before his cosmopolitan wife patted the queen on the back in typical "rules-and-protocol-doesn't-apply-to-us" Obama style). This from the guy who ignored our Allies during his first foreign media interviews in deference to the Israel-hating crowd. And now he shows the audacity to call other Americans arrogant and dismissive? Are you kidding me?

And I wonder if he's going to come back to America and say it to our face, or is this another episode like the time he traveled to San Francisco and ridiculed Pennsylvanians. (Apparently this genius may not be aware that communication is global these days.) And the sad thing is that there are millions of Obama apologists who still fiddle while our nation's integrity burns.

Fidal Castro: The Bloody Hero To . . . Who? (Or is that "whom"?)

Jimmy Carter, who has never met an anti-American dictator that he didn't tongue, praised the "generosity" of Fidel Castro's Cuba during a speech on Cuban television in which he also took time to commiserate with his Marxists chums about America's human rights violations and racist legal system. Michael Moore, who never met a roast beef sandwich that he didn't tongue, used is overtly obvious knowledge of good health to produce a film anointing Cuba a medical mecca, apparently unaware that aspirin and Pepto-Bismol are about as common as free speech and Asian cheerleaders on the Island.

Fidel Castro has become a bit of a hero to some on the left. To them he is the super cool killer with a heart of gold. He is the underdog who spreads a special tyranny within sight of Old Glory. And perhaps most endearing to some, he really hates America.

Well, in my book it's past time to remember who Fidel Castro really is. Let's move beyond twisted Spicolian PR support and examine the butcher's record. There's a reason America has sanctions against Cuba. And there's a reason those sanctions should be kept in place until the Castro brothers' reign of terror has finally been brought to an end (even if they do produce cigars that are worth lung disease).

Gary Baumgarten has posted an English translation of great piece that was originally published in El Nuevo Herald on December 19, 2008. It is worth the read.

Bloody Tally Of A 50-Year-Long Dictatorship

Israel Delivers Gaza Strip Beatdown

After months of suffering rocket attacks in its southern towns, Israel delivered a powerful message to Hamas: If you want to attack us there will be a heavy price to pay.

Israel closed the areas around the Gaza Strip, declaring it a military zone, then launched the deadliest attacks the strip has seen in years.

Ehud Barak explained:

"We have stretched our hand in peace many times to the Palestinian people. We have nothing against the people of Gaza. But this is an all-out war against Hamas and its branches. The restraint that we have demonstrated is the source of our strength when it is time to fight."

For three days Israel's air force has pounded Hamas targets. Oy. And it ain't over yet. For the Jewish nation this isn't about Star of David bumper stickers, it's about survival . . . and they take that pretty seriously.

Naturally, the current White House came down on the right side of the issue with National Security Council spokesman Gordon Johndroe's enunciation of the obvious:

"In order for the violence to stop, Hamas must stop firing rockets into Israel and agree to respect a sustainable and durable ceasefire."

Now, if you want a tight take on the story, head over to Great Satan's Girlfriend and check out what Courtney has to say: STRIP BLITZ.

Barack Obama's Secretary Of State

Right now it looks as though Barack Obama's field of candidates for his administration's Secretary of State has narrowed to a three horse race between Hillary Clinton, Bill Richardson and John Kerry (who would be automatic if I'd said "horse face" rather than "horse race"). Apparently Obama is turning to former political rivals to fill this critical foreign policy post since his friends have already shown disdain for our democratic allies.

Let me give some Washington outsider advice to the President Elect (and need I remind you, if his acolytes had listened to my advice we wouldn't be in the quaking quandary of calling him "President Elect"). When you line up the three candidates, who is the best of the worst?

John Kerry? Are you kidding me? While previous attacks on Kerry introduced the verb "swift boating" into pop dialogue, they also did something a little more important: they revealed the truth about John Kerry. His political and military careers are more fabrication than fact. This petticoat purse chaser constructed (and even filmed) bogus Vietnam data only to come back from the war to accuse his comrades of atrocities. He then joined the Senate and began a career that truly defined the word "atrocity." This is not the guy we want representing us to foreign leaders.

Bill Richardson? Likable guy, but you wouldn't trust him to pet your chinchilla. Face it, the Clintons made this guy's career. When Bill Clinton appointed Richardson as the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations it threw him into the international spotlight. Unfortunately, he didn't pay much attention while he was there since he is oblivious to even the most obvious UN facts, like Russia's veto power on security resolutions. However, despite his ostrich-like observations, he did provide some support to the White House when he gave Monica Lewinsky a "shut your trap" position on his staff. Bill Clinton later appointed Richardson as the U.S. Secretary of Energy. And how did Richardson reward the Clintons for building his career? As soon as he saw the nomination tilting for Obama he hitched his political wagon to "The One" by endorsing him, instead of Hillary, for the presidency. So, while Obama may be tempted to reward this turncoat, he should remember that the high-priests didn't trust Judas either.

Hillary Clinton? What a loudmouthed, arrogant, contentious witch -- exactly what Obama needs in his administration. Listen, if you've been following The Khaki Elephant than you know that I am not a fan of the Clintons. Hillary is a left-wing ideologue who would take this country in the wrong direction. That said, I trust her more than Obama. While I don't agree with her on a number of issues, she is smart, tough and a cunning negotiator. If I had an international squabble, I'd want her on my side. And if you're choosing between these riders of the apocalypse, despite the baggage of Bill, she is far and away the most qualified choice.

Russia Celebrates Obama Election By Aiming Missles At Poland

Hours after the election results, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev announced that there would be an old-school Russian deployment of short-range missiles aimed at Poland.

Welcome, President-Elect Obama. It seems the Russians believe there'll be an apple-eyed appeaser in the White House.

NOTE: Could be that Joe Biden was actually right about something.