Posted on 04/01/2022 9:00:05 AM PDT by RandFan
Republican Senator Rand Paul told a friendly audience of conservatives Thursday that he is standing firm on his principles as a constitutional restrainer, and while he thinks Putin’s invasion of Ukraine is wrong and unjustified, he does not think that military escalation or regime change policies — or even sanctions with no defined goals — are right.
“If you say you don’t want to get involved in this war … people immediately think you’re on the other side, that you’re sympathetic with the other side,” he told the “Up from Chaos” foreign policy conference in Washington. “I have not sympathized with Putin, what he has done is not justified. But that doesn’t mean we throw the baby out with the bathwater and throw out our principle beliefs.”
We can make it worse for the Ukrainian people with escalation and intervention, he added. “Almost all war ends in negotiation,” he charged. “It doesn’t justify (Putin’s) aggression, but I do think we need to find off ramps and exits even for our enemies.”
Paul also revealed that his brief comments to a reporter a few weeks ago in support of the Iran nuclear deal were hardly a one-off, in fact he has a pretty straightforward view of the situation.
“Leaving the agreement didn’t make anything better,” he said. He needled critics who bemoaned reports that the JCPOA renewal deal may not be as strong as the one that President Trump ripped up in 2018. “It’s going to be ‘less for less’ because we rejected ‘more for more,’” he argued.
He also took a swipe at JCPOA opponents, including his fellow Republicans on the Hill, who have criticized an agreement that has yet to emerge publicly from the tense talks in Vienna. ”If you are condemning an agreement before you even see it aren’t you simply condemning diplomacy?”
Clearly getting out of the deal allowed the Iranians to continue to enrich uranium, he said. Slapping on further “maximum pressure” sanctions and making Iran a pariah in the region didn’t work either, he said. “There is no evidence that sanctions on Iran did anything.”
This was a rare receptive audience for restraint and non-interventionism in the heart the Washington — even rarer in that it focused on the right, hosting Rep. Thomas Massie, U.S. Senate hopeful J.D. Vance, Rep. Dan Bishop (who said critics complained he “joined the pro-Putin wing of the Republican Party” for questioning “war fever” on the Hill), and Fox News’s Mollie Hemingway. Co-sponsored by American Moment and The American Conservative, topics revolved around the current echo chamber promoting an aggressive posture against Russia, and attempts to silence dissent.
Paul also said he had a general skepticism for the over-use of sanctions against U.S. adversaries, including Russia. “I don’t think we should never use the threat of sanctions … but…we have hundreds on Russia and China and no one has an idea of how to lift them; they end up having no value at all.”
So am I . And it appears that Rand Paul is leaning towards “ I don’t wanna answer that question ‘cause I wanna look statesmenlike and deliver obvious pablum”.
After the Ukes kick the Rukes out by delivering a suitcase nuke, we’ll see how much pressure the Rukes put on that region and it’ll be a true plebiscite.
As it stands now... If the Ukes allow some small region in the west to be its own republic, but the OIL belongs to Ukraine, do ya think Pootypoot would allow that? Nope.
https://freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/4050958/posts
I wrote about that in a post several days ago. They probably want their own oil companies developing the oil and gas fields instead of European companies.
But this is different than a justification to breech the agreement.
What you call a ‘justification’ is simply an excuse. Russia used all kinds of mumbly excuses to ‘justify’ their invasion. The real reason is they are simply taking land, oil, gas, aluminum, and anything valuable just like any other conquering tyrant does to a vassal state. But Pantywaist PootyPoot aPPeasers are gobbling up those ‘justifications’ like candy aPPles.
Yes, that certainly is a good point but what can be done now?
Right now, the Russian army is in Ukraine killing Ukrainians and destroy Ukrainian stuff. They are bravely fighting back, but, as in all wars, it is the people who suffer.
There are many ways to end a war. It can be total victory for one side or the other or a negotiated settlement. I do not think the Russians or the Ukrainians will win a total victory over the other so that only leaves two options:
Continued death and destruction or a negotiated settlement.
Your idea certainly has merit from Zelinskyy’s side; but can it be achieved, or if it becomes a sticking point, will it needlessly prolong the suffering? The Ukraine joining NATO will be a big threat to the world in so far as possible conflict to include nuclear war with Russia that we all should not want.
The whole integrity of the Ukraine from postwar Russian hostilities can be readdressed at some future date.
“They obviously changed their minds, what the justification was IDK.”
That is an exact quote from my post. Therefore I know neither the justification nor the excuse for breaking the original agreement. I also don’t know what ‘justification’ people are gobbling up.
Ukraine signed both Minsk agreements, then broke the agreement.
“ minskyminsk ”
“ pootypoot”
Are you in middle school?
He’s right on Russia, and wrong on Iran.
I trust Ric Grennel over about anyone on Iran. He says the new agreement is awful, and we are giving away the farm.
“Eisenhower and Washington were right. Sick of the war drums, sticking our nose where it isn’t wanted or appreciated, American blood and treasure wasted with no plan, intention, or possibility of victory, and profiteering by politicians, pundits, and Wall Street. The Bidens being deeply enmeshed in all the corruption makes me want to find a tall tree and two short lengths of rope.”
Exactly!!!!
What, you can’t handle some teasing of your Great Leader?
Therefore I know neither the justification nor the excuse for breaking the original agreement.
***They publicly announce their “justification” and we can all see it as the excuse it is, although pootypoot @$$kissers cannot see that it is an excuse.
I also don’t know what ‘justification’ people are gobbling up.
***I just told ya. Plus, it doesn’t really matter, because it’s just an excuse. If someone announces that their justification for murdering your wife is that they saw demons coming in and out of her soul, that’s the justification, but the excuse might be that your wife knows their deepest secrets in bed and they don’t want anyone else to know.
I don't like Putin or Zelinsky. They are both evil dictators.
But you sounded like you were in Middle School there...
I really do not care what you think about that.
—> “I really do not care what you think about that.
Also sounds like a middle-schooler!
Yeah, the local cheerbullyeader has weighed in and said that what she thinks is so important that when someone tells her they don’t care, she comments on that stuff rather than the actual subject matter. Now THAT sounds like a middle schooler.
By all means, tell the world here on FR why we should care what you think. Dazzle us with your brilliance.
I simply asked why you were talking like a middle-schooler.
I had no idea it would result in such emotional butthurt.
Didn't mean to blow your cover.
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