And he's absolutely correct. Iran can't hit us with a nuclear missile that they don't possess or are even trying to build according to our own National Intelligence Estimate. Russia on the other hand, has had thousands of ICBMs targeted on US cities for decades. Russia is a once and future Superpower with a growing economy and a large military. Iran is a third-world oligarchy, with an economy in shambles and a military that lost spectacularly to the Iraqi Army! Their main tactic is the suicide charge and they lost millions of mien. They Air Force and Navy is a joke and would be destroyed on Day one of a war with the US. Iran is a lot of radical rhetoric designed for internal consumption. The last thing in the world that they want is war with the US. Hell, we shot down a Iranian civilian airliner in the 80's and what did they do? Nuthin'. Any candidate who thinks that Iran is a bigger threat to the United States than Russia is geopolitically ignorant, foolish, and putting ideology over reality. Obama is clearly smarter than that.
Worse, McCain has a reputation as having a hair-trigger temper and rashly overreacts at times. Much of what must be done in international politics, with war and national economies at stake, requires some thoughtful and balanced analysis, not a quick, hotheaded, martial action. Obama's careful answers, balanced responses, and refusal to rush to judgement are virtues in a President, I think.
True, but I honestly have a hard time believing that McCain's temper will affect his decisions with regards to foreign policy and the use of our military.
I'm glad you brought that up. This whole Iraqi misadventure was a result of forgetting the lessons of vietnam. 1. Don't get into a war that is not in the vital interests of the United States. 2. Don't fight a war without the whole hearted support of the citizens. 3. Pay attention when your top allies decide not to join you. 4. Don't fight a war with one hand tied behind your back. Go in with an overwhelming force and get it done quickly or don't go in at all. 5. Don't enter a war without an exit strategy. 6. Don't make your "victory" dependent on the actions of undependable "allies". 7. The way to win a guerrila war is to win over the people, not try to kill each guerilla, one at a time. 8. You win an occupation by leaving on your own terms. 9. Don't let an unwinable fight drag on. 10. And finally, recognize when the situation has changed and change the strategy. "Staying the course" through the fog lands you on the rocks.
Granted. But now that we ARE there, you want to repeat the mistake of leaving before the job is finished, with no way for the people we're leaving behind to defend themselves from what is sure to be an onslaught.
What mistake? The Communist empire didn't take over earth. It crumbled. We are still the richest most powerful nation on earth, and their are freaking McDonald's in downtown Saigon.
Even I'll concede that we could probably start getting out of there without any issues popping up after we leave. I'm sure, no doubt, we will leave some type of presence, but it won't be nearly the footprint we have now. We've done our job over there; it's time to regroup and get ready for whoever is next.
Withdrawing the troops based on an arbitrary time table rather than on conditions on the ground was a Democratic idea. We win the war when there is a reasonably stable Iraqi government that is an ally of the United States and can handle its own security.
