The American Conservative

There is a hodgepodge of competing influences and factions in the Trump administration.

As usual, Mead fails to grasp that this is proof that Trump’s aggressive policies are reckless and harmful to U.S. interests.

Trump is throwing another bone to the hard-liners that have been driving U.S. Cuba and Venezuela policy.

It is imperative that he be held accountable for that and not be allowed to shift the blame for the consequences of his policy to anyone else.

Like the confident Western assertions from 2012 that Assad “must go,” the administration is “certain” of an outcome that seems increasingly unlikely to happen.

This isn’t an isolated episode for Pompeo, but fits into a pattern of berating reporters for doing their jobs that goes back to the early days of his tenure at State.

Almost three months since the U.S. and other governments threw their support behind Guaido, their absurdly optimistic assumptions have been proven completely wrong.

When he claims that Russia is “taunting” the U.S., Zakaria is clearly taunting Trump to do something foolish in order to uphold another stupid “red line.”

U.S. “credibility” is not in danger if Trump doesn’t back up his reckless Venezuela rhetoric. U.S. interests will definitely be harmed if he chooses to back up that rhetoric with aggressive action.

When it is our government’s policy to starve another country of resources, it is only a matter of time before the population experiences the horrific impact of sanctions.

It is always preferable for presidents to avoid making reckless threats against other governments, but it is insane to follow through on such threats simply to preserve one’s “credibility.”

Russia doesn’t “have to” withdraw its forces from Venezuela, and it makes no sense for the U.S. to be risking conflict with the Venezuelan and Russian governments over their presence.

Given all of the likely costs and dangers of a Venezuelan war, how can military action still be considered a legitimate and acceptable policy option?

The conceit that encouraging people to take up arms against a superior armed force will “save lives” is extremely dangerous and irresponsible.

Pompeo’s message naturally sets off warning bells that the U.S. is preparing to escalate its role in the crisis.

When we judge the destructive effects of sanctions policies, we need to take into account all of the consequences that these policies have.

The Monroe Doctrine is one of the most frequently misunderstood and misrepresented aspects of the history of U.S. foreign policy.