Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

The Robert Taft Republicans Return
WSJ ^ | September 3, 2013 | Bret Stephens

Posted on 09/04/2013 9:52:20 AM PDT by nuconvert

The Robert Taft Republicans Return - Isolationism has never served the interests of America, or the GOP.

'We'll be lucky to get 80 Republicans out of 230." That's an astute GOP congressman's best guess for how his caucus now stands on the vote to authorize military force against Syria.

At town hall meetings in their districts, the congressman reports, House Republicans are hearing "an isolationist message." It's not America's war. The evidence that the Assad regime used chemical weapons is ambiguous, maybe cooked. There isn't a compelling national interest to intervene. "Let Allah sort it out." We'd be coming in on the side of al Qaeda. The strike serves symbolic, not strategic, purposes. There's no endgame. It would be another Iraq.

(Excerpt) Read more at online.wsj.com ...


TOPICS: Editorial; Foreign Affairs; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: bretstephens; chickenhawk; isolationism; isolationists; neocon; neoconhysteria; republicans; roberttaft; syria
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-6061-80 ... 121-126 next last
To: nuconvert

What’s a war in the last 224 years that we didn’t intervene in that we should have intervened in? It’s a short list. I can’t see how the world would have been better off if we had intervened in the Crimean war or the Boer war.


41 posted on 09/04/2013 10:12:53 AM PDT by Our man in washington
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: nuconvert

Let Allah sort it out!


42 posted on 09/04/2013 10:12:53 AM PDT by McGruff (Strange times are these in which we live...)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Recovering Ex-hippie; wideawake

is it “isolationist” to oppose getting involved in Syria’s civil war?


43 posted on 09/04/2013 10:13:47 AM PDT by WilliamIII
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 26 | View Replies]

To: livius

How many Saudi investors/board members do they have?

How much money in brown paper bags (or gifts of $0.5M jewelry) have they gotten lately?


44 posted on 09/04/2013 10:14:17 AM PDT by Black Agnes
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: MeganC

Question for the chicken hawks: Is Switzerland isolationist because they refuse to get involved? Syria is a lot closer to Zurich than they are to New York.


45 posted on 09/04/2013 10:17:47 AM PDT by Vigilanteman (Obama: Fake black man. Fake Messiah. Fake American. How many fakes can you fit in one Zer0?)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 19 | View Replies]

To: Romulus

And you can bet the slave-labor loving sucmbags at the WSJ never seen a battlefield.


46 posted on 09/04/2013 10:18:05 AM PDT by LongWayHome
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 15 | View Replies]

To: stanne

Exactly. Whether you were for or against Bush’s interventions, the fact remains that he took us to war against Al Qaeda and the Talibs. And he committed to a decade of follow-on war to make sure neither they nor the old Baathists would return to power.

Obama’s interventions, every one including this one, are designed to put Muslim Brotherhood and the jihadists into power. Big difference.


47 posted on 09/04/2013 10:20:02 AM PDT by marron
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 23 | View Replies]

To: KC_Lion

Actually, the U.S. did go to war with France.


48 posted on 09/04/2013 10:20:44 AM PDT by Parmenio
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 8 | View Replies]

To: livius

Helping Obama save face. They love all their crony capitalist straphangers.


49 posted on 09/04/2013 10:22:06 AM PDT by xzins ( Retired Army Chaplain and Proud of It! Those who truly support our troops pray for victory!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: nuconvert
The Wall Street Journal learns political argument from the Democrats, in other words, call names and smear. Isolationism is one of these smear words. Deciding that Syria is not the place and now is not the time to use military force makes one an "isolationists". Really? Does the word actually mean anything at all?

Is there some military intervention that the WSJ opposes? Say, invade Chile. Does opposition to this military intervention make the WSJ isolationist? If not, why not?

WSJ goes for the smear on Syria, as it has in the past with the immigration issue. If they have no argument, they reach for the character assassination card and charge it to the limit. Pathetic.

50 posted on 09/04/2013 10:23:32 AM PDT by Jabba the Nutt (Obama is an historic President. He's America's first 'Dear Leader' President.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: livius

If the WSJ op-ed writers could give all illegals amnesty as they’d like, all the illegals could be drafted to go fight in Syria.

A WSJ win-win.


51 posted on 09/04/2013 10:23:57 AM PDT by TurboZamboni (Marx smelled bad & lived with his parents most his life.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: nuconvert

There’s a big difference between isolation and not wanting to enter an unjustified and unauthorized war predicated on false charges.

WSJ = global banksters


52 posted on 09/04/2013 10:24:57 AM PDT by gotribe (Vladimir Putin is MY President)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: nuconvert

“The Robert Taft Republicans Return - Isolationism has never served the interests of America, or the GOP.”

No. Obviously Amerca’s interest would be better promoted by continuous war and meddling in every muslim dogfight that comes up and every tribal rumble in Africa. Sure, a lot of brave American soldiers will be killed or wounded as they separate mad dogs from each other. And, of course, it will cost the American taxpayers hundreds of billions of dollars confiscated from their earnings. But, hey, if the Wall Street Journal says we need to go to war who can argue with that? Wouldn’t want to be called an isolationist or “surrender monkey”.


53 posted on 09/04/2013 10:25:09 AM PDT by SharpRightTurn (White, black, and red all over--America's affirmative action, metrosexual president.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: nuconvert

Now that’s sad news.


54 posted on 09/04/2013 10:25:10 AM PDT by swampthang77
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Parmenio

Not officially. I know the quasi war. But I mean full mobilezation. when was the last time Napoleon did anything half assed?


55 posted on 09/04/2013 10:25:35 AM PDT by KC_Lion (Build the America you want to live in at your address, and keep looking up.-Sarah Palin)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 48 | View Replies]

To: marron

Here’s a big difference, the Vatican is having an official worldwide prayer vigil over this No way are they not going to deem it aggression that’s trouble and it was not the case in the Iraq war


56 posted on 09/04/2013 10:25:47 AM PDT by stanne
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 47 | View Replies]

To: livius

Murdoch’s News Corporation “pays” a negative corporate tax rate. In other words, the government subsidized the production of this article. Don’t bite the hand, as they say.


57 posted on 09/04/2013 10:26:57 AM PDT by thoughtomator 2.0
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: nuconvert

This is NOT isolationalism!!!


58 posted on 09/04/2013 10:29:38 AM PDT by ZULU (Barack Hussein Obama is the Prince of Misrule)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: nuconvert
Poor Mr. Stephens doesn't get (or maybe he does and he's just another King Zero propagandist).

1) Where's the proof that Assad used chemical weapons? I've not seen the "news" media offer any. This to me is proof that there is none, as there would be wall-to-wall coverage of such proof in support of their selected boy-king wannabe.

2) We have other ways and methods to deal with the Syrian civil war. Acts of war should always be a last resort (unless you are King Zero and you've had your feelings hurt and you're feeling petulant).

3) Prove that US military action would do more than help Al Qaeda and the MB, our enemies (but not Obama's).

59 posted on 09/04/2013 10:29:59 AM PDT by jeffc (The U.S. media are our enemy)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: nuconvert

Declining to throw bombs around willy-nilly is not isolationism, it’s good policy. Insisting that we talk about it first within Congress is not isolationism, it’s how the government is supposed to work. If, under sober consideration, Congress finds that the interests of the United States require it, then we go forward; if not, not. None of this is isolationism.


60 posted on 09/04/2013 10:33:48 AM PDT by Billthedrill
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-6061-80 ... 121-126 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson