Opposed to President Bidenassertionhe has no intention of “handing over” a country that is “stronger at home and in the world” to President-elect Donald Trump. Rather, Biden is handing over a world dangerously out of control in an environment of permissiveness that began with the disastrous withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan.
The world is a much more dangerous place today than it was four years ago. In fact, it's definitely already delegatedEntering World War III.
Still, outgoing national security adviser Jake Sullivan tried to say otherwise in an interview over the weekend. PBS News Hour.
“We're handing over a very strong hand to the next team,” Sullivan insisted. He justified his conclusion by asking himself a series of questions. “Are our alliances stronger than we found them four years ago? Yes. Are our enemies and competitors weaker than they were four years ago? Yes. Our Has kept the United States out of war?Yes.Does the fundamental foundation of the United States exist?”Electricity is more robust and resilient today than it was four years ago. ”
Later, on CNN,state of the unionHe told Jake Tapper, “Americans are safer and this country is better off than it was four years ago.”
Sullivan could not have been more wrong. Remember, this selfish administration's legacy assessment isMiddle East regionJust eight days before the Iranian-backed terrorist group Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, it was “the quietest it has been in 20 years.”
secretary of stateantony blinkenA similar pitch was made to the American public. In a video posted to X, he claimed: “Our alliances and partnerships have been central to our success. Four years later, America is in a strong position to act.”
Do people in Afghanistan, Ukraine, Israel and Sudan feel the same way? Absolutely not. While the outgoing government tries to put a hollow positive spin on its record, the reality is that the world is never in more danger than it is now.
Scan the globe. There is a war going on in Ukraine and Israel. Russian mercenaries and Islamic extremists are fomenting discord in the Levant, Sahel and Sudan.
Iran is trying to achieve a complete nuclear breakthrough. Military and commercial ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden are under attack by the Houthis. China has openly threatened Taiwan and the Philippines.
North Korean and Chechen soldiers are fighting alongside Russian forces in the Kursk region. Iranian-backed proxies continue to attack U.S. military bases across the Middle East, with more than 170 attacks to date.RussiaandChineseShips have been intentionally cutting submarine cables in the Baltic Sea and doing other things.sabotage.
These are all second- and third-order effects of the permissive environment created by the Biden administration. They have emboldened our nation's adversaries over the past four years.
The Biden administration is painfully aware that no good will come from rewarding such behavior with sanctions relief, hostage payments, appeasement policies, and threats to withhold aid when allies need it most. I learned so much. Instead, Biden's policy actions only escalated the situation dangerously and deepened distrust of the US government.
In other words, Americans are no safer than they were four years ago. Our alliances, partnerships, and commitments are highly questionable, and our country is no longer as strong or secure at home or abroad.
When you're explaining, you're losing, and this weekend's attempt to “put lipstick on a pig” only vindicates and solidifies the Biden administration's case.national security failureOver the past four years.
As retired Army General Jack Keene so aptly put it, “The president has failed in the presidency.” that's reality.
As former Army Chief of Staff Gen. Gordon Sullivan once told us, “Hope is not a means.” Expecting Russia, Iran, North Korea, and China to change course is also not the way to go. Despite setbacks, they continue to make progress toward their desired geostrategic and regional outcomes and final statehood.
Mr. Biden'sweaken Russia“This strategy led the Kremlin to formalize a security agreement with its “arsenal of evil” –Iranandnorth korea. It would also allow President Putin to continue the destruction of Ukraine, its people and culture – to continue the genocide.
Meanwhile, Iran is looking for new proxies and is leveraging its remaining proxies to attack US forces in the region and destroy Israel. Both China and North Korea pose growing threats in the Asia-Pacific region and the Korean Peninsula, and Beijing Footprint developmentIt will threaten the Western Hemisphere.
The incoming Trump administration must recognize all of this and set this country on a different path, even at the risk of direct confrontation.
The United States needs to get back to the business of leading and winning, rather than criticizing, speculating from the sidelines, and dictating to countries what they can and cannot do with the weapons and ammunition we provide.
It starts with planning. The U.S. government needs a new national security strategy to define current threats and the subsequent development of strategies to mitigate them. Unfortunately, as the saying goes, we have to “assemble the aircraft in flight.”
Our enemies understand strength.IranandSyriaHe felt the wrath of President Trump during his first term. Hamas got the message.
Immediately after winning the election, Trump promised:Remove all restrictionsAnd the supply of military equipment and ammunition to Israel immediately after taking office has been delayed. ” And then, in a Reagan-esque moment reminiscent of the 1980 Iran hostage crisis, President Trump told Hamas:free the hostagesIf it is not held in Gaza before January 20, “all hell will break out.” on tuesdaycontract proposalA ceasefire and hostage release in Gaza was announced.
A similar strong message must be delivered to the most direct threats to the security of the United States, Europe, and the Middle East: President Putin, Iran's Ayatollah Khamenei, and Yemen's Houthis.
On Sunday, the next national security advisermichael waltz“We are prepared to lift restrictions on the supply of long-range weapons to Ukraine in order to force President Putin to come to the negotiating table,” Trump said. The Kremlin needs to be able to intercept Russian, North Korean, and Chechen forces and their equipment and ammunition depots before they enter Ukraine, and to destroy missile and drone launch sites deep in Russia's interior. It will send a strong message.
That would be a good start. In that case, Trump will need to apply “maximum pressure” everywhere and put a decisive end to Biden's permissive environment. Enabling allies to win on the battlefield would restore confidence in the United States and send a strong message to Khamenei, China's Xi Jinping, and North Korea's Kim Jong Un.
Colonel (retired)Jonathan SweetHe served as an Army intelligence officer for 30 years.mark tothHe writes about national security and foreign policy.
