I'm not happy with Obama's future Pentagon budget, but it looks almost sane compared to Romney. This is worth watching if you didn't see it last night. Rachel charts the money spent by the Pentagon since the Korean War, the sequestration, plus Romney's & Obama's future budgets compared to the last 60 years.

(it rolls over to another video--interview with a foreign policy expert)
Romney reveals foreign policy weaknesses in statement, positions
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26315908/ns/msnbc_tv-rachel_madd...

Nice summation. But Obama's defense budget is a new record.

What do You think of Obama's foreign policy decisions and outcomes just from the last quarter? Not what Rachel thinks, or MSNBC or even Fox. What do You think?

What do You think of Obama's foreign policy decisions and outcomes just from the last quarter? Not what Rachel thinks, or MSNBC or even Fox. What do You think?
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I'm not a foreign policy expert. I don't even pretend to be one here on the boards. I was looking at the money he wants to spend which I completely disagree with (and I mentioned I disagreed with Obama's, too).

I think foreign policy is a complicated endeavor that no one here could possibly know much about unless they are in the State Department, the FBI or CIA or the military or some other group I can't even think of right now. How have you formed your opinions if not from the media? Your premise leaves me mystified.

HMA: "What do You think?"

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/ticket/mother-slain-navy-seal-ro...

I think Mitt Romney will gladly send your children to die, but not his own.

And his history dating back to 1965 when he supported the Viet Nam war while dodging it himself backs up my thesis.

What do you think?

I think it has nothing to do with what Romney's actions may be if the country (or another) is threatened.

We do know what Obama has done. There is rioting and hatred towards the US all over the Middle East. Governments are failing, the Russians are moving troops into Syria, our unmanned embassies are being attacked.

Sounds like time for a new pitcher in this game

What do You think of Obama's foreign policy decisions and outcomes just from the last quarter? Not what Rachel thinks, or MSNBC or even Fox. What do You think?

I think we haven't blundered into two wars, nor been asleep at the switch when foreign terrorists invaded the country.

I think we have pursued realpolitik with Israel, which the hardliners there don't like, nor have we allowed them to goad us into making war with Iran, as they seem to be trying. The sanctions in Iran are about the only lever we have short of war, and given the street riots and demonstrations there, seem to be having some effect. Whether it is enough to change the direction of a single-minded group of reactionaries, however, seems doubtful.

We have bent over for China, but given our economic condition I'm not sure we have another choice at the moment. I would like to see us stronger in forcing them to revalue their currency, but I am not sure how to accomplish that without serious economic consequences.

Our policies with Europe are fairly meaningless, but at least we have forced them to carry the ball for a change (I'm thinking largely of the adventure in Libya, although there are other examples.) We have no economic or political axes there, that I can see.

The Middle East (other than Israel) is going to be what it is going to be, and for all the hooting and hollering about how we would "bring democracy there", well, we are getting what we asked for, and the Islamic fundamentalist parties are gaining power and strength. Again, I don't know what we would do to stop that, go ask the neo-cons for whom this was a brilliant idea a decade ago.

We have pretty good relations with South and Central America and with Australia. At least we haven't screwed that up. Mexico continues to be a basket case economically, but short of stepping in and bailing them out (which we have done before, in a better economic time) there is nothing to be done there, either.

We are powerless in Russia, but then we always have been, so that's not different.

I wish Obama had found a better, quicker exit from Afghanistan, but he was trying not to repeat the Reagan mistake following the Soviet pullout of "winning" and then walking away and leaving a power vacuum which the Taliban happily filled. Has it been successful? Obviously not. We're out of Iraq with "some" honor, and the country hasn't completely devolved into lawlessness, so that's a plus.

Overall I'd grade us a B, as opposed to a D- for the previous administration, which blundered all over the world, invading the Middle East, getting bogged down in the sinkhole of Afghanistan, and insulting Europe. That's what I think. You?

There is rioting and hatred towards the US all over the Middle East.

So? That's been going on to varying degrees for over 10 years now. Nothing really new there. Iran has been celebrating "Death to America Day" for 30 years now.

...our unmanned embassies are being attacked.

Consulate (in Benghazi). Again, not exactly new.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1983_United_States_embassy_bomb...
(under Reagan)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1998_United_States_embassy_bomb...
(under Clinton)

And those are just the executed attacks. Others were planned but thwarted:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paris_embassy_attack_plot

Here's a fairly comprehensive list for all nations going back to 1829:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_attacks_on_diplomatic_m...

It's really nothing new. The GOP is trying to make a witch-hunt out of it because it's one of the few things they think they can go after Obama about (not entirely dissimilar to when they went after Clinton for his affair with Monica). It's bread and circuses.

I wouldn't mind a new pitcher, as long as it isn't Romney.

What do You think of Obama's foreign policy decisions and outcomes just from the last quarter?


I have no problem with it whatsoever.

Regards, TTT.
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jgc123 wrote: And his history dating back to 1965 when he supported the Viet Nam war while dodging it himself backs up my thesis.

Just how did he "dodge" the draft? He received four student deferments and by the time his deferments were up, his lottery number was 300.

HoofooGoofoo wrote: We are powerless in Russia, but then we always have been, so that's not different.

And if Obama is re-elected, we'll be even more powerless as Obama gets "flexible" with Putin.

Just how did he "dodge" the draft? He received four student deferments and by the time his deferments were up, his lottery number was 300.

So he didn't dodge. He just refused to enlist when his country needed him.

jgc123 wrote: And his history dating back to 1965 when he supported the Viet Nam war while dodging it himself backs up my thesis.

Just how did he "dodge" the draft? He received four student deferments and by the time his deferments were up, his lottery number was 300.


I was in the last draft was #350 something

As for deferments, believe that around 60% of those elegable to be drafted got a deferment.

I also believe that you kept your Selective service number (like my #350 something) even if you had a deferment, and that was your number when you were available to report

HoofooGoofoo wrote: We are powerless in Russia, but then we always have been, so that's not different.

And if Obama is re-elected, we'll be even more powerless as Obama gets "flexible" with Putin.
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Heck he had no problem limtiting our allies the Poles and helping the Russians without flexibility.

Huffnstuff can say all he wants but the man is an absolute disaster.

No one else had the Muslim Brotherhood take over Egypt or a dictator we could deal with ousted in Lbbya with his help in order to install chaos

We will leave alone a foreign policy apparently based on flat out lying to the American people

Folks will poo poo the WaterGate comparisons, but that was a scandal over nothing -- people forget that it was the downfall of a slimy administration due to the lies of a coverup

Well the good news as he becomes Barrack Milhouse Obama, he can shake any worry about folks linking Hussein to anything bad.