JONATHAN CHAIT AUGUST 22, 2011
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A few months ago, the Weekly Standard devoted a cover to portraying President Obama as a weak-kneed appeasenik. Unfortunately, the cover came out just as Obama announced the killing of Osama bin Laden.
So, a few months later, it seemed like it was safe to go back in the water, with this offering by former Bush administration Minister of Propaganda Pete Wehner:
The president’s foreign policy has been characterized by strained relations with our allies and weakness toward our enemies. He’s shown indifference to human rights and an eagerness to cede American sovereignty to international bodies. And he has been half-hearted in fighting the wars in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Libya.
There are a lot of people in Syria right now praying that the Standard uses its next issue to castigate Obama for having failed to depose Assad.
10 comments
Touche'
- Nusholtz
August 22, 2011 at 3:03pm
I would feel some pity for them were it not scientifically provable that they have no souls.
- janus
August 22, 2011 at 3:21pm
What exactly are our "strained relations" with allies? Is this just one more right wing talking point, that supposedly comes true because it is repeated ad naseum? It is like when McConnell and every other GOP Senator said after Obama cut Federal taxes to the lowest point in 60 years, that his budget "taxed too much!"
- MikeB.
August 22, 2011 at 3:56pm
@MikeB: No, the Republicans have a point. Under the Obama administration, our relations with a lot of folks who were once valued allies have gone seriously downhill. There was the Egyptian government, for instance, led by Hosni Mubarak. And there was a time when the U.S. had an excellent working relationship with Muammar Gaddafi--now we're practically at war with the man! Not to mention that guy who helped us out way back in the day, fighting for freedom when the Soviets invaded Afghanistan... oh, what was his name again? I forget, but Reagan and Bush Senior channeled him and his friends a bunch of money and support. Obama had him shot in the head. Is that any way to manage foreign relations? I ask you.
- Dausuul
August 22, 2011 at 4:50pm
The Libyan intervention has been one of the great foreign policy successes of Obama. No Americans died, the Libyans have the pride of liberating themselves, albeit with air support, and we had international and regional legitimacy. The Tunisian Libyan Egyptian axis is now a potent beam on which to build democratic change throughout the Arab world as it has legitimacy with the Arabs themselves, and it also clearly shows how history has passed Al Qaeda militancy by. All opposition parties critique endlessly, but the current Republicans seem to want to blame Obama for everything wrong in the world, and refuse to give him any credit for his achievements. Obama has handled the Middle East very well, he is winding down both wars, and our standing with our European allies is quite solid as is our standing in East Asia and Latin America.
- nayyer_ali
August 22, 2011 at 5:00pm
"He’s shown indifference to human rights and an eagerness to cede American sovereignty to international bodies." Can Wehner explain what he means by ceding "American sovereignty to international bodies"? Does he mean that Obama doesn't view the world as America's oyster? That by letting NATO drive the bus in Libya that we've somehow given up American Samoa? Or that by having free trade agreements with China or Korea means the U.N. will have secret airbases located under Denver Int'l Airport? (Oh wait, that happened under Bush 1) I'm beginning to the think the Right's predilections for heavy-handed foreign policy has led them to think any deviation from the Bush Doctrine has de facto turned the US into surrender monkeys.
- singlspeed
August 22, 2011 at 5:14pm
@Mike, do you even have to ask? Wehner is one of those neocon losers. He's likely referring to Israel.
- RJSampson1
August 22, 2011 at 5:23pm
Why does Pete Wehner always blame America first? Isn't part of America's strained relations with Israel the fact that Israelis helped elect a coalition government headed by a man who had a proven track record of not being able to co-exist with a Democratic US administration? And who has done nothing to improve said track record since said Democratic US administration took office?
- wildboy
August 22, 2011 at 5:33pm
The criticism sounds similar to one M. Pertez.....
- tmmats
August 22, 2011 at 5:42pm
This is somewhat akin to the anti-empiracism of the current GOP. Whether the majority of GOP voters believe the earth is less than 10,000 years old or they think global warming is a conspiracy by liberal scientists. This is faith based politics writ large. Reality is simply defined as the talking points I believe in. Obama is a Democrat. Democrats are tax and spenders...Therefore Obama raised my taxes. (Does not have to be true in the literal sense. Just believeing it makes it true.) So Obama is a Democrat. Democrats are weak on defnese and weaken our position in the world. Therefore Obama did that.
- MikeB.
August 22, 2011 at 5:54pm