A Big Stick
All the world over so easy to see.
People everywhere just want to be free.
Listen, please, listen that’s the way it should be.
Peace in the valley, people got to be free.
You should see, what a lovely, lovely world this could be.
If everyone learned to live together.
Ah, hah.
Seems to me, such an itty, bitty thing should be.
Why can’t you and me learn to love one another?
All the world over so easy to see.
People everywhere just wanna be free.
Can’t understand it’s so simple to me. It is.
People everywhere just got to be free
People Got to Be Free - The Rascals
…..
In a 1901 speech, then President Theodore Roosevelt said, “speak softly and carry a big stick and you will go far.” Roosevelt did not make up the phrase, which had existed as a proverb for a long time. But it is his use of the words that brought that proverb to prominence in American lexicon.
We would still probably not recognize that phrase today were it not an accurate description of TR’s foreign policy and had that foreign policy not been so successful during his two terms as president. The world was obviously very different then, and the U.S. was an aspiring world power not yet ready to be included with the great powers such as Britain and France. Roosevelt changed that.
The U.S. is today arguably the world’s sole superpower. By definition therefore, it possesses a “big stick.” But, I would argue that the Biden administration today “speaks loudly and waves tiny sticks.” President Biden continues to use quite harsh rhetoric directed at Russia, China, Saudi Arabia and North Korea. He has frequently deployed the “sanctions” weapon available to him because the dollar is the world’s reserve currency. But yet, he has been dragged in to giving Ukraine weapons by the Germans, Swiss, Poles and French who all gave first and the US followed. He has begged Venezuela and Saudi Arabia to produce more carbon-based fuels, while denying permits to produce the same in the U.S. He continues the dance with Iran about making a treaty even as they send weapons to Russia to use in Ukraine and as they get closer to a nuclear weapon. And of course, his disastrous exit from Afghanistan cost billions of dollars, tens of thousands of innocent lives, threw away 20 years of work and showed the world that you cannot count on America to stay with you.
In other words, Biden’s foreign policy is a disaster.
Reading those words in this missive probably does not come as a shock to you.
In spite of my criticism, foreign policy is the least black and white thing in public policy. There are many nuances and figuring out how to maneuver through them is extremely difficult. I certainly don’t disagree with everything the administration is doing. I, for example, do support arming the Ukrainians. I know that position is one that many of my fellow Republicans do not share, as many Democrats do not either.
In my view, the major objective of American foreign policy is to protect the security of Americans and American interests at home and abroad. We don’t have to vanquish all our enemies to do that. We can accomplish that by being a force for stability in the world. My fear is that the world is much less stable, and our enemies are getting stronger, than was the case two years ago. Here are a few thoughts on foreign policy:
The Chinese will potentially send arms to Russia and thereby create more of an alliance between countries that were traditionally enemies. This is a very concerning development, if it happens.
Following the U.S. media, one must believe that the Ukrainians are winning the war. I am not so sure. My distrust of the U.S. media establishment is so deep that I simply do not believe what they report about that war. Biden has invested in a Ukrainian victory and so has the media. Finding the truth of what is happening is not easy. What if the Russians launch a successful offensive this Spring? Are we “in for a penny in for a pound” for more US engagement to keep the Russians from winning? Or do we give up on Ukraine and set up a new major defensive line in Poland, the Baltics, Romania and so forth? And what are the follow-on effects of such a loss?
Some months ago, the Nord Stream 1 pipeline was blown up by a nation/state. No independent group would have had the resources to do this. Early rumors were that either Russia or Germany had blown up their own pipeline. Then came a report that the UK had done it at the request of the U.S. Recently, Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Seymour Hersh, has reported that the United States did it solo. He has only one unnamed source but has significant details about the operation. Hersh has correctly exposed many hidden embarrassments of administrations over the last 50 years and the press always ran with them. But they are covering this one up. Why? I don’t know if it’s true. But if it is, did we just blow up the asset of an ally (Germany) without their knowledge or consent? It would be a very hostile act on the part of Biden. Arguably more hostile than anything done since the attacks after 9/11. But what provoked this? If we didn’t do it, somebody did. US intelligence must know who. Why won’t they tell us?
Because the US Dollar is the world’s reserve currency and most international trade is conducted in US dollars, sanctions involving the dollar can be quite effective. But many countries around the world are watching what is happening and fear the power the US might have over them because of it. Imagine sanctioning a country because they do not allow gay marriage, or have not met the climate goals or don’t have sufficient “racial equity” or something? Blue States in the US have “sanctioned” red states in the US for such things. Why stop at the ocean? This is causing a move away from the dollar in many countries.
If the Iranians are close to a nuclear weapon, the Israelis cannot allow that to occur. The government of Iran has made it its mission for decades to eliminate Israel and every Jew along with the country. Israel has to take out that weapon. Their very survival depends upon it.
These are just a few “flashpoints” about which perhaps you have not thought. None of these are happy developments. There are all the others with North Korea and Taiwan about which you do know. The miserable US media splashes headlines with every black criminal shot by police or parent unable to mutilate their child’s genitals, but they ignore the increasing geopolitical risks. Remember, it may take two to tango, but only one to start a war. Just ask the Ukrainians.
I hope, for all of our sakes, that the administration has a better handle on all of this than it appears. I fear they do not. This stuff is not easy for the most capable of administrations.
Where is Teddy Roosevelt when we need him?
I remain respectfully,
Congressman John Campbell
Drive Fast and Live Free