Ronald Reagan: Isolationist

American Conservative ^ | 2011-06-28 | Jack Hunter

[rabscuttle385]

Sen. Paul added: “Reagan’s foreign policy was one in which we were somewhere, some of the time, in which the missions were clear and defined, and there was no prolonged military conflict—and this all took place during the Cold War.”

FYI

[ansel12]

I served under Reagan and was reviewing offers for mercenary work during his administration, and I never saw him as an isolationist. It seemed to me that Reagan was everywhere in the world, and he sure was increasing our reach and material in Europe, as he was increasing our global Navy.

[Prokopton]

Our Founders warned us over and over again about the dangers of foreign entanglements and foreign intervention. It is part of the statism, shared by Democrats and Republicans, that is pushing the dangerous course we're on.

[Captain Kirk]

You’re generally right but he was smart enough to realize that we had to get out of the Lebannon quagmire (much to the anger of neocon types in the 1980s).

[who_would_fardels_bear]

Thanks for posting this anti-revisionist essay.

Everyone wants to cloak themselves in the mantel of the great one.

Neoconservatives are like Christian Scientists: they're neither.

[truthfreedom]

Great article

[who_would_fardels_bear]

Reagan got so much more accomplished by building up and extending our defenses than by going to war.

Does anyone remember SDI? Pershing missiles in Europe? Strong continuous support for NATO as a bulwark against the Soviets? Limited indirect and clandestine support of anti-communist guerrila groups?

There're lots of ways to stay engaged in the world without bombing it or overrunning it with troops.

Evidently McLame is starting to have memory lapses.

[Oceander]

Perhaps someone ought to remind Mr. McCain of the words of the first holder of the office he tried in vain to occupy in 2008, namely, Washington's warnings against foreign entanglements.

[ansel12]

You’re generally right but he was smart enough to realize that we had to get out of the Lebannon quagmire (much to the anger of neocon types in the 1980s).

Our invasion of the nation of Grenada took place only hours after the Beirut bombing, Reagan had his hands full with a military invasion before that bomb even went off, Reagan was too busy globally to stay in Lebanon when there were too many gains to be made elsewhere.

[1rudeboy]

Does anyone remember SDI? Pershing missiles in Europe? Strong continuous support for NATO as a bulwark against the Soviets? Limited indirect and clandestine support of anti-communist guerrila groups?

Isolationism, of the Ron Paul variety . . . clearly.

[1rudeboy]

Washington was sneaky. He warned us of foreign entanglements, after signing a treaty with France.

[Oceander]

Yes, but he didn’t warn us to avoid every single relationship with foreign powers, he warned us to be careful about every single foreign relationship we consider, and to only enter into those that truly advance our own interests.

[CowboyJay]

I think you’re quite right that Reagan was not an isolationist.

Reagan’s genius was never having to bring our military might to bear. Our enemies understood that we had the capability to annihilate them, and believed Reagan might just be crazy enough to pull the trigger. Reagan leveraged that threat of annihilation to win the peace.

Huge divergence from the current wave of never-ending limited engagement conflicts.

[ansel12]

I think that Reagan would have acted just as George W Bush did after the worst attack in American history.

In 2001 Reagan would not have had to devote so much of his massive military buildup and manpower to the European theater.

[1rudeboy]

I wish others knew it.

[Batrachian]

It was Jefferson, not Washington.

"Peace, commerce, and honest friendship with all nations-entangling alliances with none."

But, most of the founders felt the same way. Washington said:

"It is our true policy to steer clear of permanent alliance with any portion of the foreign world."

[1rudeboy]

Jefferson wrote Washington’s Farewell Address?

[who_would_fardels_bear]

In what alternate reality does someone as commonsensical as Reagan declare war on Iraq, a country that had piddling to do with 911?

Only someone as ill-informed and manipulated as W. was by the Neocons could have come up with something as stupid as attacking a country composed of three sworn enemies only kept at bay by a vicious despot.

Attacking Zambia would have made more sense. At least we could have been in and out a lot quicker.

[Batrachian]

Reagan made a critical mistake there. Maybe he had no choice, but running home with a bloody nose like that sent very much the wrong message to the enemy. I admire Reagan as much as anyone, but I won’t sugar coat what happened.