Trump Foreign Policy

I was wrong about Bolton

Featured image There are few men in public life I have admired more than John Bolton. To take just one example, I am grateful for his successful work in the administration of the first President Bush to overturn the UN’s vile “Zionism is a form of racism” resolution. See pages 40-43 of his memoir, Surrender Is Not an Option. Bolton suffered the Democrats’ remorseless campaign of defamation against him to prevent his »

The line on John Bolton

Featured image Here’s the left’s line on John Bolton and his forthcoming book: Despise Bolton, but Read His Book Anyway.” President Trump concurs with the first part, but dissents from the second. And, he would add, if you do read his book, don’t believe what he writes. My line on Bolton and his book can’t be summarized as easily. However, it includes the following thoughts: First, if the book contains classified information, »

The biggest debunked conspiracy theory of them all

Featured image Of all the lies the Democrats and their allies in the mainstream media have told about President Trump, the claim that Trump is a tool of the Russians stands out for its audacity I’m not surprised that the Dems/MSM went big with their lying. However, it astounds me that intelligent people I know who are outside of the Democratic Party and the mainstream media somehow found merit in this claim. »

The stage is set for Israel to annex part of West Bank

Featured image Over the weekend, Benjamin Netanyahu was sworn in for another stint as Israel’s prime minister. This time, he’s the head of a coalition government and, if the agreement he struck with the opposition holds, will serve for only 18 months. Netanyahu doesn’t want to waste them. His next big initiative will be the annexation of portions of the West Bank. Netanyahu wants to get this done before the U.S. presidential »

The wrong goodbye?

Featured image I added a question mark to the title of this post about the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan because there is room for reasonable disagreement as to the wisdom of our withdrawal. To answer my own question, though, I think withdrawing is the wrong move. We have accomplished a lot in Afghanistan. We crushed al Qaeda there and, as John says, we ensured that Afghanistan would no longer be a launching »

The Long Goodbye, Take Two

Featured image John’s post below about the Afghanistan problem is fitting and right, and I write to agree with him. It seemed better to do a separate post than an appended comment as is our frequent practice among us. John pays tribute to the faithfulness of our fighting forces who believe in the mission, and it is right to honor their courage and willingness to take the supreme risk. Two observations. First, »

The Long Goodbye

Featured image We started this site in May 2002, in the shadow of the September 11, 2001 attacks. The war against Islamic terrorism was one of our key themes, and has remained so for nearly 18 years. But over that time, Islamic terrorism has declined. Other issues have come to the fore. We and many others have largely moved on. Still, it seems rather stunning that we have not yet commented on »

Trump In India

Featured image President Trump is paying a triumphant visit to India. Yesterday he delivered a speech to a cheering throng of more than 100,000. You probably have seen video; this CBS report is reasonably balanced: Of course, press coverage of the president’s visit is grudging. Reuters, for example, acknowledges the president’s enthusiastic reception but takes a shot at India’s Prime Minister: Modi, a nationalist who won re-election last year and has shifted »

Report: Soleimani’s assassination leaves Revolutionary Guard reeling

Featured image Democrats seem nearly unanimous in their outrage over the assassination of the leading Iranian terrorist, Qasem Soleimani. Some Republicans have also expressed opposition to President Trump’s decision to take Soleimani out. I thought it was a great move. I’m delighted that Soleimani has joined Osama bin Laden, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, and Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in the ranks of those wondering where the heck those virgins are. However, I questioned whether »

Deal of the Century?

Featured image That is how President Trump bills the Israeli-Arab peace plan that he unveiled today. You can download the entire proposal, titled “Peace to Prosperity: A Vision to Improve the Lives of the Palestinian and Israeli People,” here. I haven’t had time to digest the entire plan, but the Jerusalem Post summarizes the high points: Borders: Trump’s plan features a map of what Israel’s new borders will be, should it enact »

Landmark Trade Deal With China; New York Times Hardest Hit

Featured image President Trump signed the “Phase One” trade agreement with China today at the White House. The agreement is far-ranging; you can read its entire text here. Among other things, it includes “commitments from Beijing to purchase $200 billion of U.S. products over the next two years, halt intellectual property theft and refrain from currency manipulation.” In return, the U.S. has reduced or eliminated some tariffs on Chinese-manufactured goods, but other »

Brian Mast speaks — silence ensues

Featured image Rep. Brian Mast is a double amputee courtesy of the munitions disseminated by Qassem Soleimani in Afghanistan, Iraq and elsewhere. (Rep. Mast himself sustained his injuries in Afghanistan.) We posted Rep. Mast’s remarks condemning his Democratic colleagues on the floor of the House last week in “Brian Mast speaks.” Rep. Mast followed up his remarks on the House floor in the House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing yesterday (video below, C-SPAN »

Brian Mast speaks

Featured image Rep. Brian Mast is a double amputee courtesy of the munitions disseminated by Qassem Soleimani in Afghanistan, Iraq and elsewhere. Rep. Mast himself sustained his injuries in Afghanistan. Beyond the 600-plus Americans whose deaths in Afghanistan and Iraq by such munitions can be attributed to Soleimani are the many more who have been grievously wounded and disfigured. Rep. Mast is representative of them in his person and spoke up on »

President Trump Tweets Support For Iranians

Featured image Iran has been roiled by protests and demonstrations following its government’s admission that its troops shot down a Ukrainian airliner. A few hours ago, President Trump produced two tweets in Farsi, supporting the Iranian people. (Parenthetically, I assume that Trump doesn’t know Farsi, so that apparently answers the question whether anyone besides the president gets involved in his tweets.) Here they are, with English translations: به مردم شجاع و رنج »

Trump’s Foreign Policy, Through British Eyes

Featured image The London Times has an interview with Ben Wallace, Great Britain’s Defense Secretary, that offers a good perspective on American foreign policy under the Trump administration. It is interesting, in particular, to contrast the reporter’s editorializing with what Wallace actually says: Britain must prepare to fight wars without America, the defence secretary has warned, amid concerns that President Donald Trump will pursue an ever more isolationist foreign policy. Isolationist? I’m »

Iran Lies About Its Counterstrike

Featured image Iran tossed a few missiles at U.S. bases in Iraq yesterday, ostensibly in retaliation for the killing of Qassem Soleimani. The regime gave warning of the strikes, which injured no one and did little property damage, likely on purpose. Iran promptly announced that it was done retaliating. In other words, please don’t hit us again! It is revealing that the regime thought it necessary to lie about its counterstrikes. FARS »

Trump speaks

Featured image President Trump just concluded his formal statement on last night’s attack by Iran on the two bases in Iraq. He opened his statement with the vow that Iran will never acquire nuclear weapons on his watch and observed: “Iran appears to be standing down, which is a good thing for all parties concerned and a very good thing for the world.” He reported that no American or Iraqi lives were »