“But better to get hurt by the truth than comforted with a lie.” — Khaled Hosseini, author
President Donald Trump has taken decisive action. On June 27, he signed an Executive Order to protect Civil War monuments to Confederate generals, and monuments in general. Laws already exist to protect monuments, the Monuments Protection Act, but this protective decree is the first ever Executive Order in this regard! Who says we’re bereft of leadership?Meanwhile, COVID-19 is raging at catastrophic levels. It is revealed by various sources that Trump was briefed on intelligence reports that Russians paid Taliban fighters a bounty for killing U.S. military personnel in Afghanistan. Trump says that the story is “fake news,” but some Americans wonder if he should be believed. He’s used that line before.
As the story continues to develop, reports have it that Trump was briefed in writing, and personally, as far back as March of 2019. In one incident, three Marines, and an Afghan ally, were killed in April 2019. According to the New York Times, this is one specific example of incentive killing by bounty seekers. Trump took no action. He sought to not only invite Vladimir Putin to the U.S., but lobbied the other members of the G-7 to include him into what would return to being the G-8 (the other members of the G-8 expelled Russia from the group after the Russian invasion of Crimea).
Former Trump Administration staffer John Bolton has not answered questions about whether or not he personally briefed the president about the Bounty-On-Americans program, for reasons thought be related to legal sanctions against talking about it. No mention was made of it in his recent book. But at the time, Bolton did tell others that he’d briefed the president on this information.
Trump is known to not read the president’s daily briefing. He claims ignorance of the Russian bounty on American troops. Why would he not be aware of such an important development? Are those closest to him, cabinet members, aides, and others hesitant to tell him what he may not want to hear? Are they worried, perhaps, that he would get on the phone with Putin, and reveal sources and methods?
Or, as it clearly appears, did he get briefed and make no response, a shocking dereliction of duty for the commander in chief?
And yet, Donald J. Trump has been focused on protecting confederate monuments, while troops die with bounties on their heads, and 129,000 Americans die from COVID-19. Remember, those confederates waged war against the United States.The coronavirus pandemic was grotesquely bungled by the man who recently held rallies in Tulsa and Phoenix. Other countries have successfully reduced the spread and death rates from this virus. Our president has downplayed it from the start, called it a hoax, and squandered containment efforts as our numbers continue to climb.
Is it too much to ask to hope to hear more than voiced “concern” and “we need to get to the bottom of this” from Republican leaders? Do not the Republicans wish to convey themselves as strong on defense? As friends of the military? What would the late John McCain have said? John James, Republican nominee for the U.S. Senate, has referred to himself as “1000% behind Donald Trump” and misses no opportunity to tout his own military service. Will he soon be speaking out about this egregious betrayal of our troops?
Basura
Can you or anyone answer this question…what if this President or any President knew Russia put a bounty on American soldiers. What act other than declaring war on that Country could possibly be valid retribution?
I can say that pulling troops out of Germany wasn’t a good response. Putin very much wanted that to happen. There are further economic sanctions that could be employed. I don’t know all the options for response, but there could be responses short of declaring war. Some might be military. I’m not saying I have the answers. But to fail to make any response at all, and feign ignorance is very weak, and emboldens our adversaries. Harry, are you OK with no response? Trump talks tough, but his inactions speak louder than words. Might he have he at least addressed it? Does he care so little about out military men and women?
Mr. Basura,
Sir,
The force level in Europe was based on a belligerent East Germany and Poland, both are now in NATO and in the friendly forces paragraph in the Defense of Europe Operations Plan, add in Ukraine a few others and our forces were just not needed. The force levels were based on the a Warsaw Pact threat, a threat that is no more.
Retaliation against Russia doesn’t have to be direct military action to respond to US intelligence finding there has been a bounty for killing US military advisors in Afghanistan.
Russia’s biggest ten exports are:
Crude and refined oil – $255B
Natural Gas – $43B
Coal – $14B
Machinery (including computers) – $6.8B
Aluminum – $6.6B
Wood – $6.5B
Wheat – $6.2B
Gold – $5.8B
Diamonds – $4.6B
Frozen fish (whole) – $2B
What’s noticeable in that list is other than Machinery and computers, #4 on the list everything else are natural resources. Compare that to the US exports where all but one of the the top five are value added goods. After crude and refined oil the rest of Russia’s top tend up to less that 50% of the US top export. Top 5 US exprts below:
Machinery including computers – $205.9B
Mineral fuels including oil/natural gas – $199.7B
Electrical machinery – $173.2B
Aircraft-spacecraft – $136B
Vehicles – $133B
All that’s important because effective retaliation against Russia can be in the financial sectors. Strictly enforce the Magnitsky Act that among other things doesn’t allow Russian nationals or their businesses from parking their money in US banks, investing in US real estate or building plants like aluminum plant that is being built in Kentucky.
Its well know Vladimir Putin picks and chooses his country’s oligarchs and in return for being chosen to run Russia’s biggest companies, Putin personally gets a piece of the revenues. Its how a trained lawyer who spent 15 years in the KGB before becoming a civil servant in 1990 accumulated at least $40B in personal wealth since being elected to lead Russia.
Old adage follow the money yields a plethora of wealthy Russian nationals and financial entities the US can target to send a strong message to Russia letting them know their behavior won’t be tolerated. What missing is the current administration’s political will to freeze Russian assets.
Thank you Couchman. The political will is lacking, as you say. We can only, at this point, guess as to why.
Political will for what – a rumor? Most likely a Democrat talking point dreamed up by Biden’s handlers. It was proven false in that it couldn’t be verified, so they didn’t bring it to the president’s attention in briefings.
TDS, TDS, TDS! Get over it already!