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More Bad History
With the announcement that President Trump wanted to bring up to one-third of US troops from our permanent bases in Germany, Rep. Liz Cheney tweeted out the following:
Ok. If you want to argue that it’s bad policy, fine. Make your case. If you want to drag the founding of the nation into it, then you better think twice. As certain members of this community will attest, I’m not a big fan of bad history or history distorted to fit an agenda.
Has she never read George Washington’s farewell address? (“…nothing is more essential than that permanent, inveterate antipathies against particular nations, and passionate attachments for others, should be excluded…”) Has she not read Thomas Jefferson? (“Commerce with all nations, alliance with none, should be our motto.”) Is she totally unaware that a generation ago, the man who was known as “Mr. Republican,” Robert A Taft, Sr., was a staunch “non-interventionist?” While we lament the current situation on our shores, maybe we should have been taking care of business in our neighborhoods instead of worrying about what was happening in the suburbs of Baghdad?
Oh! the NeverTrumpers cry, he’s doing Putin’s bidding! Please raise your hand if you think the Russians are ready to steamroll across the plains of Poland and into Germany. Hell, all he really has to do is cut off the natural gas just as he did in 2009. With Germany abandoning coal and crude oil for energy production, that will give him even more leverage.
Perhaps if Rep. Cheney wants or needs a more recent history lesson she should look into the proposals that went even further than Trump’s. In the not-so-distant past, the Pentagon was proposing cuts of 50 percent or more. The New York Times Editorial Board chimed in:
“There is nothing sacrosanct about maintaining particular Army divisions in Germany. The role of American military forces there has evolved considerably over the decades — from occupying a defeated enemy to deterring Warsaw Pact aggression to symbolizing Washington’s post-cold-war commitment to remain militarily engaged in Europe. Along the way, the size of the American presence has evolved as well. In the nearly 15 years since the Berlin Wall fell, United States force levels in Germany have dropped by roughly 75 percent.”
Who was leading these efforts in the glory days of American foreign policy? Well, that was 2004 and I suspect she’s probably going to see the old man for Father’s Day…
Published in Foreign Policy
Trump is leaving 2/3 of the troops in place. So how bad can it be? Hopefully, this might inspire Germany to come up with some military planes that can fly and boats that can float. And maybe even stop being dependent on Russia for natural gas. “We can do it”, might say Merkel.
A few years ago, German troops showed up for a military exercise carrying wooden rifles. How pathetic is that? I don’t know what the German phrase is for “Step up to the plate” but it’s far past time for them to do so.
I saw in this morning’s news that Poland has said that they’d be really glad to see those troops come there. That’s the kind of allies that the U.S. needs.
The Liz Cheney’s of this country really need to put some attention to what is going on here.
That was my thought. I’m 100% in the stand with your allies camp, but this is not a complete withdrawal – not even a majority are pulling out. Sen. Cheney needs to take a chill pill.
It’s bad enough when we see the Left distorting our history, but Liz and others on the Right should know better. Shame.
Yea…but Trump!
Cheney is engaging in deeply dishonest rhetoric. Perhaps her father is proud of her standing up for the old guard that long spent our treasure to subside like-minded foreign elites who share contempt for Congresswoman Cheney’s constituents.
Besides, don’t we have troops in Poland now?
I had a disturbing dream where bits and pieces of this story were present. Ill be honest – not sure it was a good idea, and why was everyone taken by surprise, including Germany and our military? Didn’t Trump just have a big phone call with Putin? I know I’m the odd woman out here, but these are my thoughts. I have a friend who is one of my customers. Her son is in the military in Germany and they have been on high alert for some time – I guess since the virus, but it is more than that – you know they can’t allude to much. Thanks for the post.
Remember when people would whine about Halliburton and the Military Industrial Complex?
Yes. One is a relative who I got to meet in person shortly before his deployment there.
As I said, this isn’t about whether the troops stay or go. It’s the speciousness of the tactics. She should know better.
Good for Trump!
I want him to take all of our troops out of Germany and put them in Poland. Germany is not much of an ally anymore and has taken almost every opportunity to negate our presence in the world. We should not be spending the billions there we are any more.
I have been a big fan of Dick Cheney for a long time. I read a biography of him when recovering from my own single vessel bypass. He never wanted to be VP. His ambition was to be Speaker of the House and he would have been a far better one than Ryan or, god forbid, Hastert. He took the DoD job and then VP as a favor to presidents. The VP job cost him about $5 million at the time and probably more since. But times have changed. Iraq in 1992 was probably worth doing. I could wish April Glaspie had been a better diplomat but it was necessary as we still depended on Saudi Arabia.
I supported Bush in 2003 but I think now it was a mistake. We wanted to know if Arabs could rule themselves without tyrants. The intelligence was lousy. CIA had been taken over by leftist “activists” who produced a report that Iran had lost interest in nuclear weapons. It was a lie. Policy was driven by people like Bill Kristol who never saw a dictator he did not want to overthrow with US military.
We now have fracking. Germany has been allying itself with Russia. Gas pipelines are more concrete than rhetoric. It is time to cut our obligations and start to think about balancing expenses. The Deep State is very opposed to any disentangling. They make millions lobbying and representing supplicant states. Mattis and Kelly have joined a big lobby firm. They cannot be trusted. Mattis’ judgement can be evaluated by his role in the Theranos scandal. Schultz and Kissinger are in their 90s and can be excused for poor judgement,. Mattis is not and cannot be.
Trump has no understanding of the history or the consequences of his actions.
Couldn’t agree more for three big reasons. First, closer to Forward Edge of the Battle Area. Second, lower cost of living in Poland. Third and most importantly, the Poles like us.
He understands well the consequences of the US being overextended and suffering combat deaths for no good reason.
Seeing this, I went back and Googled what Liz’s reaction was to Trump’s Syrian withdrawal. This is from the Washington Free Beacon:
I suppose it would be worthwhile, in the wake of her comments on Trump’s actions in Germany, if the Free Beacon or someone else went back and asked her how the Syrian withdrawal has played out, eight months down the line.
I’m old enough to remember when I was a kid and elites were anti-Communist…then, by the time I was a teenager and for forty years thereafter they were fervently anti-anti-Communist, scorning those “kooks” who were obsessed with fear of Russia…now, in the past five years, they scorn those “kooks” (like me) who are insufficiently afraid of Russia…
I’m with the President. If the Germans want more guns, then they can buy less butter.
A careful study of the latest maps reveal to me that the distance between Moscow and Berlin is 1,200 miles. A reincarnated 8th Guards Tank Army would have to fight its way through Belarus and Poland before arriving at the German border. Not an impossible task, but a bit of a stretch given the state of readiness of the Russian Army.
Especially given Germany’s bizarre support for Iran. There must be a Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice cartoon somewhere with Obama, Merkel, Khamenei, and Putin.
Are you sure her name isn’t actually Karen?
Perhaps E(Liz)abeth is her middle name, or something?
Not sure Russia would be thrilled, but I like the way you think.
From DW:
When Europe arms itself bad things seem to happen.
I wonder if this will be an impetus for a more perfect (European) Union. Because right now they can’t agree on anything. including a foreign policy.
Depends on if they see a threat level, or care about seeing a threat level. Mutual fear of the Iranians, once it was clear Obama was going to try and tilt U.S. policy towards them, made the Israelis and the Saudis BFFs, because they decided they needed to protect each other if America wasn’t going to be there for them. My guess is Germany and the other EU nations are a ways away from that for now.
The technocrats in Brussels have long been pushing for an EU Army. That was one of the driving points for Brexiteers. But I’m sure all of their thinking was predicated on using US forces as the first line of defense. And up until now a long succession of American presidents and politicians of all stripes have been fine with that. What a lovely political out for Europe: Use the Americans as first cannon fodder and if it all goes sideways they can blame us.
If they revert back to their old ways after their experiences in the 20th Century they deserve all the misery they initiate.
Not gonna happen. The Western European voters like their butter.
Iran is a big purchaser of German engineering and industrial goods. It’s not bizarre to avoid p*** off your customers.