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Rand Paul has a clue about Iraq
Posted: Fri Jun 20, 2014 8:00 am
by brick-house
Rand Paul is the only leading Republican that I can think of, that opposed the Iraq War. His father certainly did and was lambasted by the neo cons. Here is an op-ed he recently wrote.
http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/s ... 1403219558
Though many claim the mantle of Ronald Reagan on foreign policy, too few look at how he really conducted it. The Iraq war is one of the best examples of where we went wrong because we ignored that.
In 1984, Reagan's Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger developed the following criteria for war, primarily to avoid another Vietnam. His speech, "The Uses of Military Power," boils down to this: The United States should not commit forces to combat unless the vital national interests of the U.S. or its allies are involved and only "with the clear intention of winning." U.S. combat troops should be committed only with "clearly defined political and military objectives" and with the capacity to accomplish those objectives and with a "reasonable assurance" of the support of U.S. public opinion and Congress and only "as a last resort."
Much of the rationale for going to war in 2003 did not measure up to the Weinberger Doctrine, and I opposed the Iraq war. I thought we needed to be more prudent about the weightiest decision a country can make. Like Reagan, I thought we should never be eager to go to war. And now, 11 years later, we are still dealing with the consequences.
1994 Dick Cheney seem to be very cognizant of the Weinberger Doctrine. Now, he wants to double down...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9YuD9kYK9I
Re: Rand Paul has a clue about Iraq
Posted: Fri Jun 20, 2014 9:22 pm
by Libertarian666
This is why Rand Paul is the only candidate that the Rs should choose for 2016. He can get the R base, any anti-war independents, and a lot of anti-war democrats.
That is, if the Rs actually want to win.
Re: Rand Paul has a clue about Iraq
Posted: Sat Jun 21, 2014 6:07 am
by brick-house
Libertarian666 wrote:
This is why Rand Paul is the only candidate that the Rs should choose for 2016. He can get the R base, any anti-war independents, and a lot of anti-war democrats.
That is, if the Rs actually want to win.
+1 Rs are not getting my vote until they purge the party of the chickenhawk/neocons.
R primary should be interesting. R establishment will have a candidate (Romney 3.0 or Jeb Bush?) and the reactionary wing will have a candidate (Cruz/Rubio). If Paul loses the primary, I hope he goes third party.
IMHO - Obama beat Hilary in 2008 because of her Iraq vote. Paul would have fun with her Iraq logic pretzel in the debates...
Good list of chickenhawks....
http://www.nhgazette.com/chickenhawks/
Re: Rand Paul has a clue about Iraq
Posted: Sat Jun 21, 2014 6:43 am
by Mountaineer
brick-house wrote:
Libertarian666 wrote:
This is why Rand Paul is the only candidate that the Rs should choose for 2016. He can get the R base, any anti-war independents, and a lot of anti-war democrats.
That is, if the Rs actually want to win.
+1 Rs are not getting my vote until they purge the party of the chickenhawk/neocons.
R primary should be interesting. R establishment will have a candidate (Romney 3.0 or Jeb Bush?) and the reactionary wing will have a candidate (Cruz/Rubio). If Paul loses the primary, I hope he goes third party.
IMHO - Obama beat Hilary in 2008 because of her Iraq vote. Paul would have fun with her Iraq logic pretzel in the debates...
Good list of chickenhawks....
http://www.nhgazette.com/chickenhawks/
I thought for a minute or so that list was the IRS targeting list. The I thought it was the George Soros hate list. Then I realized what it was, the "be responsible and take personal accountability" talking heads list.
... Mountaineer
Re: Rand Paul has a clue about Iraq
Posted: Sat Jun 21, 2014 7:56 am
by Benko
While I like Paul, he is no better on amnesty for illegals than most of the rest (including Rubio and Ryan). CraigR (and perhaps others?) have pointed out the consequences of wrong stand on that issue.
Re: Rand Paul has a clue about Iraq
Posted: Mon Jun 23, 2014 7:12 pm
by Pointedstick
Re: Rand Paul has a clue about Iraq
Posted: Mon Jun 23, 2014 7:22 pm
by Pointedstick
As for the most photogenic politician ever, I think that honor can never be pried away from former California representative Henry Waxman:
[img width=400]
http://fellowshipofminds.files.wordpres ... waxman.jpg[/img]
Re: Rand Paul has a clue about Iraq
Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2014 1:38 am
by MediumTex
Desert wrote:
TennPaGa wrote:
Desert wrote:
Do you think, if a bunch of us sat down and really worked at it, that we could design a scarier figure than Richard Cheney? I mean, the guy is darn near perfectly evil. Human hands could this creature not create.
I don't think we could do it.
But do you know who could?
Dick Cheney.
Perfect.
I lived and DC and worked on the Hill for a while when I was younger. I was waiting for an elevator in the Capitol one day in 1991, and when it opened there was Secretary of Defense Dick Cheney and his medium-sized entourage. He just looked like a typical self-absorbed high level bureaucrat. There was no hint of the cartoon character he would one day become.
I always thought it was cool that I had that experience.
***
My favorite Cheney story was when he shot that guy in the face on the hunting trip a few years back. I was listening to Howard Stern the next day and they said it turned out that the guy Cheney shot was a member of Al Qaeda.
Re: Rand Paul has a clue about Iraq
Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2014 4:49 am
by brick-house
Rand Paul also has a clue on the "War" on Drugs.
http://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/ ... tcome.html
Nice to hear a more "liberal" perspective from a Republican.
Re: Rand Paul has a clue about Iraq
Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2014 5:18 pm
by Libertarian666
Rand Paul is a RINO. He's actually a libertarian, much like his father.
