Category Archives: Foreign Policy

Troops In Niger And Norway Now Cheered, As Neoconservatism Is Normalized

Conservatism, Donald Trump, Foreign Policy, Left-Liberalism And Progressivisim, Neoconservatism, Republicans, War

Have you noticed that it’s now quite acceptable, on the so-called Left and phony Right, to casually quip about our troops in Niger and Norway? There is hardly any debate, disagreement or daylight, for that matter, on this dangerously united front between the brain-addled, muddled political factions at all.

This is the gift President Trump has given the neoconservatives, which now comfortably encompass neoliberals and all of Conservatism Inc.

Via Military.com (as everyone cheers for war or considers it inevitable if we want to flex our muscle):

VAERNES GARRISON, Norway — The stated goals of the Marine Corps’ newest rotational force in Norway are to enhance partnerships with European allies and improve the service’s ability to fight in cold weather.

But on a brief visit to the 300-member unit ahead of Christmas, the commandant and the sergeant major of the Marine Corps both described the strategic role the small unit fills — and the fact that a peacetime mission can be preface to combat if circumstances change.

The Norwegian Home Guard base near Trondheim that houses the Marine rotational force was the first stop on Gen. Robert Neller’s annual Christmas tour. …

… The stop was a new one for the tour. The first Norway rotation, from 1st Battalion, 2nd Marines, deployed in January and was replaced by a new unit from 2nd Battalion, 2nd Marines, in late August.

Neller emphasized to the Marines that they should remain ready to fight at all times, predicting a “big-ass fight” on the horizon.

NEOCONSERVATISM HAS BEEN NORMALIZED.

‘Trump’s National Security Strategy is Decidedly Non-Trumpian’

Donald Trump, Foreign Policy, IMMIGRATION

Well of course. Trump’s National Security Strategy is largely neoconservative.

Strategically, the Trump administration’s NSS “is thematically consistent with many previous administration’s strategies,” the official who’s read the full draft said. “In fact, it even shares many similarities with” the Obama administration’s 2015 Strategy. … [recognizing] that promoting economic prosperity is core to sustained U.S. global leadership; both highlight the value of preserving an open and liberal international order that has often times benefited the United States; and both underscore the importance of preserving core American principles and values. “What’s most striking is how disconnected the Trump NSS is from the words and actions of the president himself …
… the United States will always stand with those who seek freedom … [and] continue to lead in championing human rights. …
“the United States must continue to attract the innovative and the inventive…[and] create easier paths for the flow of scientists, engineers, and technologists into and out of public service.” [The last sentence is commensurate with Trumpism as it’s vague. What does it means? Who? Immigrants? Hi-tech immigrants must go into government? WTF!?]

“The draft NSS does contain a few uniquely ‘Trumpian’ themes, including multiple references to ‘sovereignty.’”

It states that “the United States affirms its sovereign right to determine who should enter the country and under what circumstances.” It also discusses physical border security, such as through “a border wall, the use of multilayered technology, the deployment of additional personnel” and through the use of “enhanced vetting of prospective immigrants, refugees, and other foreign visitors.”

Another classically ‘Trumpian’ theme is the idea that, while the liberal international order has helped advance U.S. interests in some cases, it has also hurt the United States. The NSS’s second pillar, “Advancing American Prosperity,” notes that “we oppose protectionism, but take the view that globalism and multilateralism have gone substantially too far to the point that they are hurting U.S. and global growth. Our partners and international institutions can and should do more to address economic and trade imbalances, including overcapacity in industrial sectors.”

Bad Things Legitimized Under Trump, On The Welfare & Warfare Fronts

Business, Donald Trump, Foreign Policy, Homeland Security, Intelligence, Republicans, Taxation, War, Welfare

Has anyone notice that:

1. Transfer programs, welfare, have gained populist legitimacy under President Trump?

[Expanded] is the child tax credit … allowing families who owe no federal income taxes to still claim up to $1,400 of the $2,000 child tax credit, up from $1,100 in the original version.

2. The taxpayers most stiffed are now individuals, more often than not from humble beginnings, whose talents and hard work have netted them a high income. A glance at the Bell Curve explains why this cohort has no political clout: they’re a statistical minority.

Also legitimized under Trump is permanent warfare. You can say, “our forces in Africa,” and nobody, left or right, will question our sacred military’s right to be in over 100 countries conducting maneuvers. America’s borders remain porous.

3. “All of the individual tax breaks will expire at the end of 2025.” In other words, tax cuts for businesses are forever, tax cuts for individuals merely temporary.

UPDATED (2/12): Yemen: Iraq All-Over Again, But Without The Ground Forces

Foreign Aid, Foreign Policy, Middle East, Military, Neoconservatism, Republicans, UN, War

“‘Yemeni Journalist: Saudi Arabia’s Total Blockade on Yemen is Death Sentence for All.'” But, apparently, some lowlifes on my Twitter feed are dancing with joy like the 9/11 rooftop dancers. Yes, maybe it’s Fake News. Seriously, if you wish this on Yemeni kids; I wish this on yours.

Maybe the dumb f-cks of the US government want more refugees pouring into the US, this time Yemeni ones. The Saudi’s, our bosom buddies, are barricading Yemeni ports. No aid gets through. They’re dying.

Veterans, however, seem to demand that we prop-up their warfare state:

UPDATE (2/12):