Episodes
Monday Mar 12, 2012
Peter Brooks, Rep. Duncan Hunter, Mackubin Owens, Gordon Chang
Monday Mar 12, 2012
Monday Mar 12, 2012
As tragic as the recent blood-letting by an American soldier was, we must keep sight of the big picture. Peter Brooks said it best, “this is a snapshot of the whole movie and the movie has to come out with a happy ending for the United States.” America must prevent the reformation of al-Qaeda and other groups that want to attack America. Therefore Afghanistan needs to remain a national security priority.
Switching to the Law of the Sea Treat, Peter tries to explain why the Navy supports such an endeavor when America has triumphantly sailed the seas for centuries without being a member of LOST. This treaty concedes American sovereignty to a UN organization that will hinder US economic and energy prosperity. Finally, Iran calls for more international talks, which is obviously not a result of their new found diplomacy, but rather a stall tactic so they can finish their nuclear capabilities.
We ask our soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines to be nice to the Afghan populous, while trying to kill the enemy and it is hard for a 20 year old who has spent 10 months in country, watching his buddies get killed, to have that dichotomy in his mind. Not all the evidence has been collected pertaining to the shootings by a US soldier, but in reference to handing him over to an Afghan court, In Congressman Duncan Hunter’s words, “we are still Americans even if we are fighting in Afghanistan and our rights are protected by the Constitution.” We do not just hand over Americans to foreign governments, no matter what the charge is. This is the time when we need to turn Afghanistan into a counterterrorism mission because our soldiers cannot be scared that the Afghan’s they are training will shoot them in the back when they turn around. If we do not trust our partners, we cannot accomplish our objective.
The president claims he may or may not notify Congress before applying military intervention to Syria, and he would only do so after international approval. Since when does the American president seek approval from the UN over Congress? This is a matter that flies in the face of the Constitution and Rep. Duncan Hunter and his colleagues will not allow it to stand. Rep. Hunter is also fighting for Marine Sgt. Rafael Peralta to receive, posthumously, the Medal of Honor for protecting his men in Fallujah by jumping on a live grenade. The Medal of Honor committee denied Sgt. Peralta this award because there wasn’t sufficient evidence; Congressman Hunter has found new evidence.
Dr. Mackubin “Mac” Owens has analyzed how the defense cuts will ultimately benefit the Navy because the first round of cuts will focus on the Marine Corps and Army, but the second round of cuts will damage the Navy’s capabilities which the president claims will be at the forefront of his pivot towards the Pacific. Is Obama undercutting his own strategy by reducing the resources of the Navy while using them to spearhead his Pacific policy? The president isn’t listening to his own Secretary of Defense who says that these cuts will be disastrous to national security. Strategies without resources are nothing more than just words and so far the president is all talk but no action. At its height, the military only made up 20% of the federal budget while most the money went to entitlements. The president is still trying to expand Entitlements at the expense to our national security.
The Chinese military is getting a larger share of China’s federal budget, an 11.2% or $100 billion increase. As a result of China’s “Great Firewall,” nobody can hack foreign governments without Beijing’s knowledge therefore their denial of knowing about cyber attacks doesn’t hold water. China is trying to control space by forcing the US into arms control treaties that the US will abide by, and China will not. Gordon Chang explains how the Secretary of the Communist Party sent the military to surround the American consulate in order to apprehend a defector, which was his “top cop.” As a result of this hostile action, chances are Bo Xilai will not be promoted to a seat on the Politburo’s Standing Committee, which could be beneficial to the US considering he is one of the more radical anti-Americans in the Communist Party. China may create foreign military misadventures in order to blind the populous from face their economy is faltering. This economic slowdown could lead to more civil unrest as well as a shaky future for the Communist regime.
Monday Feb 06, 2012
Barry Rubin, Christian Whiton, Peter Brooks, Gordon Chang
Monday Feb 06, 2012
Monday Feb 06, 2012
The Egyptian Parliament has started work and will being trying to put the country back together, culminating in a presidential election in either June or July of this year. Egypt needs US financial aid therefore how much influence will the Muslim Brotherhood exact on the country? Is Obama’s weakness to deal with international situations adding to the deterioration of a peace process between Israel and its neighbors? Hamas and the Palestinian Liberation Authority seem to be cultivating a unified government jeopardizing and talks of peace between the PLO and Israel. Listen to Barry Rubin’s analysis of this growing conflict.
Obama has been allowing China to act with increasing recklessness while still getting aid from America therefore how can Obama and Secretary of State Clinton be surprised when China vetoes the UN resolution against Syria? Will the Obama Administration allow the Muslim Brotherhood to come to power in Syria like they did in Egypt? Christian Whiton explains how the administration is trying to take away American's choice to choose over their future.
Is the president trying to ignore global events in order to mask the fact he does not want America to be involved therefore taking away Americans chance to be informed and cultivate their own opinion as to whether or not America needs to be involved in global events? The United States has global responsibilities and must keep an eye on the entire world therefore when the administration says America will pivot towards Asia, what are we pivoting away from? Author of “A Devils Triangle,” Peter Brooks, highlights the fact that the president claims Iran does not have the capability to attack the US yet his intelligence directors claim Iran is looking to and can attack homeland America. Is he misleading Americans or just clueless?
As a result of Obama’s refusal to allow the Keystone pipeline, Canada is trying to reach an agreement with China to export oil. America should b buying oil from secure allies and not the Middle East and especially should not be allowing our allies to sell oil to China and boost their floundering economy. Currently China is one of Iran’s biggest buyers of oil therefore it is no surprise that they support this rogue regime. Gordon Chang helps to explain how China sees America as weak therefore ignoring US wishes and grow closer to Russia in order to oppose American policies. If China sees America as weak, what will stop them from trying to grab more power and influence on the global stage?