Anyone who follows college football knows we are headed into “Silly Season.” It’s that time of the year when college football programs, disappointed with their team’s lack of progress, start firing coaches. Rumors of coaches on the chopping block start to fly on social media, and the mainstream media begin suggesting potential replacements. This is called the “Silly Season.”
Unfortunately for our country, and our men and women serving in the military, “Silly Season” at the Pentagon, under the leadership of President Barack Obama, never ends. Even Vice President Joe Biden seems “ticked off” by the president’s lack of a coherent plan and vision when it comes the direction of the United States military. Biden and many others in the Washington D.C. beltway share the same attitude about the president’s recent firing of Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel.
That attitude made for a fairly awkward press conference last Monday, where Biden had to stand next to both of them as Obama attempted to spin Hagel’s “resignation” as a positive change, despite Obama’s past two defense secretaries leaving amid similar controversy. Under President Obama, American foreign policy has become incoherent and weak. We have abandoned and angered our allies, while bolstering and emboldening our enemies.
There was strong disagreement between the president and Hagel on two very important theaters of operation: Eastern Europe and the Middle East.
Look at Eastern Europe: Vladimir Putin is asserting Russia’s strength in the region with little or no resistance from the American president. The Russian’s have invaded Ukraine without consequence. Now other former Soviet satellites fear they may be next without the West’s protection.
Look at the Middle East: When ISIS began sweeping across the region, slaughtering men, women and children alike, and declaring open war on any nation or ideology that stood for freedom of religion, Obama spoke boldly declaring the USA would not tolerate such acts of aggression or such senseless slaughter. The entire world was looking to America for our leadership, but what did Obama do? He sent a few non-combat support troops to Iraq and flew a few fighter jets over the conflict area, firing at non vital targets as if he thought it would scare ISIS away. With no decisive action from the US, the rest of the free world opted to stay out of the conflict. Today, ISIS continues its violent assault on the liberties, rights and lives of all who live in the region, while threatening acts of terror on all western nations, including ourselves.
The general public’s faith in our President’s ability to protect our nation has taken a serious hit, and Obama has managed to alienate his closest allies. Former Defense Secretaries Robert Gates and Leon Panetta have told stories of Obama’s advisors, many with no past military experience,micromanaging our military and foreign affairs, rarely listening to the policy recommendations of the experts in their fields. Obama’s defense team has deserted him, and he stands weak and alone against some of the most powerful and evil forces our world has ever seen.
American foreign policy hasn’t looked this weak since the days of Jimmy Carter. The Carter Era ushered in the Reagan Revolution. And, I believe the Obama Era will usher in the next great Conservative Revolution in this country. It began with the most recent elections, and will continue into 2016.
Our nation needs another leader in the mold of Ronald Reagan. Reagan was a strong leader who knew the key to a successful foreign policy was in finding the absolute best and brightest to lead our military, getting out of the way and trusting them to do the job right. Reagan knew the value of having a strong and coherent long-term strategy Americans understood as well as our allies and enemies. The world respected America under Reagan’s leadership, giving us an incredible amount of leverage in international affairs. America was a force to be reckoned with – a force for good and for freedom around the world.
The time is rapidly approaching when we will have the opportunity to pick America’s next President. Will we continue Obama’s legacy by electing an individual to the most powerful seat in the world who lacks both a vision for our nation and the conviction to carry one out? Or will we elect a true patriot, someone who knows the value of a “Peace through Strength” approach to foreign policy? The decision is in our hands, and the responsibility lies with us. Now is the time to begin evaluating the potential Republican candidates for President, as many will be off and running in the next few months. Conservative Republicans need to consolidate around the candidate that can best energize the base and bring back the Reagan Democrats.
By Bill Armistead, Chairman of the Alabama Republican Party
