Kathianne
10-21-2023, 03:35 AM
Is China just sitting back and waiting? The US and its people are no longer serious, what will be the price?
https://www.wsj.com/articles/biden-speaks-but-will-he-act-61fe471c?st=ybuwqfw3jmil4lf&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink
Biden Speaks, but Will He Act?Iran’s proxies are shooting at Americans without a U.S. response.
By
The Editorial Board
Follow
Oct. 20, 2023 6:42 pm ET
President Joe Biden delivers a prime-time address to the nation about his approaches to the conflict between Israel and Hamas, humanitarian assistance in Gaza and continued support for Ukraine in their war with Russia, from the Oval Office of the White House on
President Biden on Thursday night finally told Americans the truth about a new world of threats, which he called “an inflection point.” It’s also a decisive moment for the Commander in Chief: Will Mr. Biden respond if Iran keeps attacking U.S. forces abroad? And will he build support in Congress to restore U.S. military power?
Wars in Israel and Ukraine “can seem far away,” the President said in a rare Oval Office address. “And it’s natural to ask: Why does this matter to America?” But “history has taught us that when terrorists don’t pay a price for their terror, when dictators don’t pay a price for their aggression, they cause more chaos and death and more destruction,” and the threats to America increase. Vladimir Putin, Mr. Biden noted, views the Baltic countries in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization as rogue Russian provinces. He won’t stop at Ukraine.
Give Mr. Biden credit for making this case directly to the American public. He ducked talking about Ukraine for 20 months, reserving his few remarks for foreign capitals or international meetings. That became untenable after the Oct. 7 attack on Israel. Thursday’s address included the usual bromides about democracy, but the current moment is about building hard power and the will to use it.
Mr. Biden was straightforward that prevailing in both Israel and Ukraine is “vital for America’s national security.” He correctly noted that Iran is supporting Hamas and Russia’s invasion, though he could have told Americans more about Russia and Iran’s deepening relationship.
Iranian military personnel have trained Russians in Crimea on drones. The Russians appear to be furnishing training jets for the Iranian military. The two are working in tandem to push U.S. forces out of Syria. This axis of animosity is a coordinated effort to crush U.S. allies and establish themselves as dominant regional powers.
Mr. Biden included a line about holding Iran “accountable,” but the President hasn’t so far. He didn’t mention attacks this week on U.S. forces in the Middle East. Iran’s proxies will continue to take shots as long as the American response is timid, and the risk of dead Americans is real.
The core problem is the decline of American deterrence. The President has sent two carrier strike groups and fighter aircraft to the region. But Tehran is still testing whether Mr. Biden is willing to use them. One issue is Mr. Biden’s frail delivery, which may figure into the calculation of adversaries. But a country manages a crisis with the President it has, for better or worse.
A failure to respond to Iran’s provocations would broadcast that America lacks the will to defend itself. Mr. Biden failed to deter Mr. Putin from invading Ukraine after the Afghanistan fiasco, and a defeat in the Middle East would echo with China in the Pacific.
The larger project is rebuilding the U.S. as the arsenal of deterrence, and Mr. Biden’s more than $100 billion funding request is a start. The package includes about $14 billion for Israel, including help for air defenses as Israel burns through Iron Dome interceptors.
The Administration wants $61 billion for Ukraine, and isolationist voices in both parties will resist. But much of the request is marked for the U.S. defense industrial base—that is, increasing U.S. military capacity. The funding includes replenishing U.S. weapons stocks and expanding ammunition lines.
That is also essential for deterring the Chinese Communist Party from striking Taiwan. Mr. Biden wants $3.4 billion to boost U.S. submarine readiness and production, an American edge over Beijing’s forces. The U.S. currently can’t build enough boats to meet its own needs while also selling hulls to the Australians as part of the important Aukus agreement.
But the $7 billion total for Pacific priorities is too meager. Congress can fill out that request into a real plan to build more long-range missiles and three attack submarines a year to hit the needed 66 hulls in the U.S. Navy, from 49 now.
***
Mr. Biden’s request deserves bipartisan support, but he will get more from Republicans if he faces the reality that he can’t have both more military power and ever-more welfare and green-energy subsidies. He should choose, and now is the time for guns over butter.
Americans are receiving an education in what the world looks like when U.S. deterrence erodes, and rebuilding that power and will should be the top bipartisan priority in Washington. Americans grow weary of the costs of being the “essential nation,” as Mr. Biden called the U.S. on Thursday evening. But the alternative is unfolding in Israel, Europe and Africa, and the U.S. needs to prepare for the worse that may be coming.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/biden-speaks-but-will-he-act-61fe471c?st=ybuwqfw3jmil4lf&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink
Biden Speaks, but Will He Act?Iran’s proxies are shooting at Americans without a U.S. response.
By
The Editorial Board
Follow
Oct. 20, 2023 6:42 pm ET
President Joe Biden delivers a prime-time address to the nation about his approaches to the conflict between Israel and Hamas, humanitarian assistance in Gaza and continued support for Ukraine in their war with Russia, from the Oval Office of the White House on
President Biden on Thursday night finally told Americans the truth about a new world of threats, which he called “an inflection point.” It’s also a decisive moment for the Commander in Chief: Will Mr. Biden respond if Iran keeps attacking U.S. forces abroad? And will he build support in Congress to restore U.S. military power?
Wars in Israel and Ukraine “can seem far away,” the President said in a rare Oval Office address. “And it’s natural to ask: Why does this matter to America?” But “history has taught us that when terrorists don’t pay a price for their terror, when dictators don’t pay a price for their aggression, they cause more chaos and death and more destruction,” and the threats to America increase. Vladimir Putin, Mr. Biden noted, views the Baltic countries in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization as rogue Russian provinces. He won’t stop at Ukraine.
Give Mr. Biden credit for making this case directly to the American public. He ducked talking about Ukraine for 20 months, reserving his few remarks for foreign capitals or international meetings. That became untenable after the Oct. 7 attack on Israel. Thursday’s address included the usual bromides about democracy, but the current moment is about building hard power and the will to use it.
Mr. Biden was straightforward that prevailing in both Israel and Ukraine is “vital for America’s national security.” He correctly noted that Iran is supporting Hamas and Russia’s invasion, though he could have told Americans more about Russia and Iran’s deepening relationship.
Iranian military personnel have trained Russians in Crimea on drones. The Russians appear to be furnishing training jets for the Iranian military. The two are working in tandem to push U.S. forces out of Syria. This axis of animosity is a coordinated effort to crush U.S. allies and establish themselves as dominant regional powers.
Mr. Biden included a line about holding Iran “accountable,” but the President hasn’t so far. He didn’t mention attacks this week on U.S. forces in the Middle East. Iran’s proxies will continue to take shots as long as the American response is timid, and the risk of dead Americans is real.
The core problem is the decline of American deterrence. The President has sent two carrier strike groups and fighter aircraft to the region. But Tehran is still testing whether Mr. Biden is willing to use them. One issue is Mr. Biden’s frail delivery, which may figure into the calculation of adversaries. But a country manages a crisis with the President it has, for better or worse.
A failure to respond to Iran’s provocations would broadcast that America lacks the will to defend itself. Mr. Biden failed to deter Mr. Putin from invading Ukraine after the Afghanistan fiasco, and a defeat in the Middle East would echo with China in the Pacific.
The larger project is rebuilding the U.S. as the arsenal of deterrence, and Mr. Biden’s more than $100 billion funding request is a start. The package includes about $14 billion for Israel, including help for air defenses as Israel burns through Iron Dome interceptors.
The Administration wants $61 billion for Ukraine, and isolationist voices in both parties will resist. But much of the request is marked for the U.S. defense industrial base—that is, increasing U.S. military capacity. The funding includes replenishing U.S. weapons stocks and expanding ammunition lines.
That is also essential for deterring the Chinese Communist Party from striking Taiwan. Mr. Biden wants $3.4 billion to boost U.S. submarine readiness and production, an American edge over Beijing’s forces. The U.S. currently can’t build enough boats to meet its own needs while also selling hulls to the Australians as part of the important Aukus agreement.
But the $7 billion total for Pacific priorities is too meager. Congress can fill out that request into a real plan to build more long-range missiles and three attack submarines a year to hit the needed 66 hulls in the U.S. Navy, from 49 now.
***
Mr. Biden’s request deserves bipartisan support, but he will get more from Republicans if he faces the reality that he can’t have both more military power and ever-more welfare and green-energy subsidies. He should choose, and now is the time for guns over butter.
Americans are receiving an education in what the world looks like when U.S. deterrence erodes, and rebuilding that power and will should be the top bipartisan priority in Washington. Americans grow weary of the costs of being the “essential nation,” as Mr. Biden called the U.S. on Thursday evening. But the alternative is unfolding in Israel, Europe and Africa, and the U.S. needs to prepare for the worse that may be coming.