In a Guinness Book of Records-sized asinine maneuver, President Obama conceded military and diplomatic point position to former KGB operative, Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Indeed, the Unexceptional POTUS outdid his “Leading from Behind” strategy with his new and improved and super-sized, “Give Uncle Joe’s Nephew the Lead” policy. And of course that bulwark of truthfulness and integrity, Sec State John Kerry, is acting as his stone-faced yes-man.
As Clark Judge writes at HughHewitt.com:
But despite Mr. Obama’s graceless attempts to say that the Russians and Syrians had given-in to American resolve, the Russian deal was not a bow to American strength but a shrewd measuring of American weakness, particularly of Mr. Obama’s weakness.
The number of blunders the president and his administration committed in this affair is hard to fathom: making the “red line” comment in the first place; not having vetted the idea and its consequences in the White House policy process (if there is one these days) beforehand, not immediately preparing in case the Syrian president called Mr. Obama’s bluff.
For more than a year, the administration failed to do the diplomatic rounds to line up the support of allies just in case, or to do the congressional rounds to line up the support of Congress, or to make military plans, or to send quiet signals to Assad (perhaps through Russia or China) that the U.S. was not to be trifled with on this matter, all of which should have started last year as soon as the president uttered the words “red line.”
Vladimir Putin wrote in Wednesday’s New York Times:
Recent events surrounding Syria have prompted me to speak directly to the American people and their political leaders. It is important to do so at a time of insufficient communication between our societies.
Relations between us have passed through different stages. We stood against each other during the cold war. But we were also allies once, and defeated the Nazis together. The universal international organization — the United Nations — was then established to prevent such devastation from ever happening again.
The United Nations, that organization that routinely kow-tows to tyrannical leaders such as Mahmoud Ahmadinejad? That political body that disrespects America and Israel on a regular basis, despite America funding 22% of the total United Nations budget?
Putin continues:
Syria is not witnessing a battle for democracy, but an armed conflict between government and opposition in a multireligious country. There are few champions of democracy in Syria. But there are more than enough Qaeda fighters and extremists of all stripes battling the government.
The United States State Department has designated Al Nusra Front and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, fighting with the opposition, as terrorist organizations. This internal conflict, fueled by foreign weapons supplied to the opposition, is one of the bloodiest in the world.
Mercenaries from Arab countries fighting there, and hundreds of militants from Western countries and even Russia, are an issue of our deep concern. Might they not return to our countries with experience acquired in Syria? After all, after fighting in Libya, extremists moved on to Mali. This threatens us all.
And the big finish that should raise every patriot’s hackles:
My working and personal relationship with President Obama is marked by growing trust. I appreciate this. I carefully studied his address to the nation on Tuesday.
And I would rather disagree with a case he made on American exceptionalism, stating that the United States’ policy is “what makes America different. It’s what makes us exceptional.” It is extremely dangerous to encourage people to see themselves as exceptional, whatever the motivation.
Sorry Vladimir. America was birthed by exceptional founders and built on the exceptional foundation of The Constitution. These United States have been defended over the years by the world’s most exceptional fighting force.
And now, God-fearing, America-loving patriots find themselves being betrayed by a VERY unexceptional Commander-in-Chief who is relinquishing our role as mightiest nation on earth to a former KGB Lieutenant Colonel.
