OPINION:
No better friend. No worse enemy.
It wasn’t that long ago that the rest of the world viewed the United States of America this way. Sadly, that seems to have changed under the failed leadership of President Joe Biden. These days, it appears that there is no worse friend. And to many dictators and terrorists, it seems there is no better enemy.
Don’t say we didn’t warn you. In his 2014 book, former Secretary of Defense Robert Gates said that he believes that Joe Biden has “been wrong on nearly every major foreign policy and national security issue over the past four decades.” His decisions seem to be overwhelmingly political. This spells disaster when applied to national security and foreign policy issues.
The massive failure in Afghanistan is a prime example. Mr. Biden seems to have pushed the military to meet an arbitrary withdrawal date of August 31, 2021. His military leaders warned against the botched operation.
Mr. Biden pushed a false narrative that military advisors told him to go forward with the withdrawal plans. They did not. They were telling him that they could not protect both Bagram Airfield and the U.S. Embassy in Kabul with the number of troops he was proposing, so they would have to pick between the two. That choice left billions of dollars worth of military equipment for the Taliban. That alone would be an inexcusable error for a “Commander-In-Chief.”
Sadly, it only got worse as the Biden Administration announced the withdrawal date before implementing a plan to get American citizens and allies out of the country. People who risked their lives to assist U.S. service members continue to be tortured and murdered by the Taliban.
Under Mr. Biden, no worse friend for our allies. No better enemy for the terrorists.
Is it any wonder that when Vladimir Putin saw weakness, he took action? Mr. Putin, like Lenin before him, believes that you probe with bayonets. If you find mush, you push. If you find steel, you stop. When Ronald Reagan was President, the Russians found steel. His “Peace through Strength” approach helped win the Cold War without firing a shot.
Under the Obama administration, Mr. Putin found mush. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and Joe Biden himself, flew overseas to declare a “reset” with the Russian Federation. President Obama passed on a message to Mr. Putin in 2012, asking him to wait until after the elections. Mr. Biden’s stumbles in Afganistation, however, were more than words. Putin saw the failure as a sign of weakness.
In contrast, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is showing real leadership. He and his loyalists remind many of us of what we’ve read about General George Washington and the original American patriots. Facing a professional army and staggering odds, they hold back the assault. But for how long?
Over the weekend, Mr. Zelenskyy asked members of the United States Congress for more lethal aid, more planes, more sanctions, and to shut down Russian oil exports. On Tuesday, Mr. Biden finally announced a ban on Russian oil, but it is inexcusable that the administration did not have a plan to do this in the first place.
Some might suggest that the Biden Administration saw the Russian oil ban as a scapegoat for high fuel costs. Let’s be clear that gas prices have increased since Joe Biden took office. Failed “green energy” policies are more responsible than Russia for high costs at the pump. It is not about the number of drilling permits approved that matters. They mean little or nothing if government red tape blocks energy supplies from getting to market. The federal government needs to unleash American energy.
Moving from Moscow to Midland should be our energy policy. Sadly, the climate change radicals have control of the White House. Sky-high gas prices are what they want to force Americans off of oil and gas.
Under Mr. Biden, the U.S. backed out of Afghanistan without a clear plan and abandoned both Americans and American allies. The Taliban took over and now have control of massive amounts of American military equipment left in the country.
Russian President Putin observed the weakness of the Biden Administration and saw a chance to push even further than they did under the Obama Administration. He may be correct. Ukraine turned over nuclear weapons in return for promises of protection. So far, however, they are primarily on their own.
Biden administration officials are currently negotiating to return to a nuclear agreement with Iran. Sources suggest that they want the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, or IRGC, to be taken off the most significant terror sanctions list. At the same time, discussions are being held with brutal dictator Nicolás Maduro’s Venezuela for more of their oil.
In Joe Biden, it seems that our allies see no worse friend, and our enemies see no better enemy.
• Scott Walker is the president of Young America’s Foundation and served as the 45th governor of Wisconsin from 2011 to 2019.
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