Sunday, May 15, 2016

Foreign Policy Requires Leadership and Knowledge: Some Leaders Have It, Some Do Not: Trump Seeks It But Does Not Understand It.

Donald Trump said he would not take using the bomb (nuclear) against ISIS off the table.  George W. Bush could not find Bin Laden in the seven years and 9 months that passed after the attack on 9/11 and not even in the invasion of Afghanistan a month after the attack.  How many members of ISIS would be killed in a nuclear attack and how many innocent men, women and children would be killed?  Common sense tells this writer the innocent would suffer the burden and the devastation.  There would be more refugees in the middle east from that one event than what is taking place now with the civil war in Syria.

Israel's prime minister Netanyahu appeared before the U.S. congress almost two years ago with charts and told congress and the world Iran would have a nuclear weapon in six months.  Of course it never happened and was used as a scare tactic to scuttle President Obama's treaty with our allies and Iran to curb that country's nuclear ambitions.  That treaty is now working and Trump said as President he would end or redo the treaty.  So here we have Iran who has never threatened to use nuclear weapons or admitted having a nuclear weapons program and Trump who is talking about the possibility of using the bomb in the middle east.

Trump said he would build a wall on the U.S.'s southern border with Mexico and make that country pay for it.  Mexico said don't hold your breath because they would not pay for the wall.  Trump then back tracked and said immigrants in the U.S. who send money back to Mexico would be banned from doing so and that would be a loss of revenue for Mexico.

Trumps position of a ban on Muslim's entering the U.S. was quickly rebutted by London's mayor who is a Muslim and Trump backed down again and said there would be exemptions.  He backed down once again and said the ban was only a suggestion.

Trump also said he would renegotiate the treaties with our allies.  Of course that can only happen if our allies agree and in many cases the treaties are with multiple allies such as NATO.  This goes along with his statement of America to go it alone like the failed policy of President George W. Bush.

The United States and our allies have worked for many years to stop the spread of Nuclear weapons and now we have Trump talking about nuclear weapons use in the middle east and urging S. Korea and Japan to develop their own nuclear weapons program so they can defend themselves.  That is a foreign policy based on madness.

Trump's loose talk shows his lack of knowledge and leadership on the subject and a failed grasp of what the President and Commander in Chief's responsibilities are in foreign policy.  His flip flopping indicates a person who is not confident and speaks before he understands the foolishness of his words.  And when one understands Trump does not think American is a great country, that is all the more reason the American people should be alarmed.


This commentary written by Joe Lorio