Monroe Dispatch - No Struggle, No Progress

The bodies of three American soldiers killed in an attack at a military base in Jordan had barely landed back home At Dover AFB, as Republicans in Washington almost immediately began to criticize President Joe Biden. Even as President Biden performed the solemn duty of being present when the deceased soldiers in flag-draped coffins were taken off military aircraft, the saber-rattlers were criticizing Biden for not striking back quickly enough. Even as Biden watched the coffins pass him and First Lady Dr. Jill Biden with their hands across their hearts, plans were already in motion for the nation to strike back. Instead of letting the president and his military advisors do what they are trained to do, some Republicans saw this as an opportunity to say that Mr. Biden is “weak” as a leader. Nevertheless, they “conveniently” forgot to remind us(which we already know) to the American people that our military personnel are in hostile environments where an attack can occur without warning. They don’t want to tell us that America is not welcomed by everyone in some of the nations where there is a military presence. Iraq and Iran are two of those places. They don’t mention anymore that America is in Iraq because of a Republican president who didn’t attack the nation where the majority of the 911 hijackers were from. Nor will they talk about the days of the hostages being taken in Iran when another Republican nominee running for president is alleged to have made a deal with Iran just to keep then-president Jimmy Carter from being a hero who perhaps was on the verge of freeing those remaining American hostages. In addition, it was a Republican president who succeeded President Barack Obama, who pulled the U.S. out of a nuclear disarmament deal orchestrated by Obama that would have kept Iran from producing a nuclear weapon in the Middle East. It was that same president who announced a date when American troops would be out of Afghanistan. If you guessed that was Donald Trump, go to the head of the class.

President Biden told the nation that there would be a military response, as the military struck targeted facilities in Iraq and Syria on Feb. 2, 2024. The people who are said to have carried out the Jordan attack were Iranians who are in Syria and Iraq. The attack did not emanate from Iran, which is why the U.S. did not bomb any facility in Iran, but according to military officials, a “message” was being sent to Iran warning them not to directly attack Americans. The military responded to where the attacks came. That wasn’t enough for Sen. Lindsay Graham or Speaker of the House Mike Johnson. Graham, who has been referred to by President Biden “as a deal friend” from their days in the Senate, was highly critical of Biden for “giving a week’s notice” to the attackers, which only served some “dumbass” that doesn’t know to get out of the way, according to media reporting. Graham and some Republicans wanted Biden to order an attack on Iran just to start another way in a region where wars never seem to end. The military response was from bombers that struck four sites in Syria and three in Iraq, prompting military officials to say that they hit the intended targets and that their objective was not to start a war with Iran. However, if one listens to Graham saying that no one is afraid of the U.S., the bombings got the attention of Iranian leaders who only spoke of “consequences” that the U.S. will face. Graham would have had nothing but praise if Trump had been in office ordering those military strikes. Simply because Biden is sitting behind the desk that used to be occupied by Trump, nothing but an all-out conflict involving the military in an election year might be the only way that Trump can win in November. Another thing is that Congress would have to authorize a war, meaning one will find out just how much Graham wants to see more American soldiers die just for his guy to win in November. One other thing that Graham and his Republican Trump-backers will not mention, is that the drone that hit the military base was one that could have been stopped by our technology. It didn’t, as an investigation may be on the way. For now, Republicans are throwing Trump every kind of life preserver that they can find. It’s sad that one who may believe in “starting a war” to help someone win an election, especially when over three years ago, that same one was holding the-then president for causing the insurrection on the Capitol, has seemingly thrown that (honor, integrity) all away for political points. Remember, the world is watching. So is God.