There were so many things the worst president this country has ever known failed at, not the least of which was foreign policy.
We all remember Obama's "red line in the sand" nonsense when it came to the Middle East generally and Syria in particular.
President Trump started out with promise enough. Rule One in Leadership 101 is "Never Promise What You Can't (or won't) Deliver."
Assad led off with a substantial gas attack to kill off 80 or so people in the Idlib Province area that was in his way for urban renewal or something.
Mr. Trump sent season's greetings in the form of a missile strike or two that blasted one of Assad's air bases. Didn't destroy it, you understand: it was back up in operation in 72 hours or so.
But he was sending a message, with great fanfare... even if it appears many of the aircraft on the ground were missed... on purpose.
For a while, things quieted down when it came to gas attacks. Then, a few months ago, the Regime began to use those attacks again... small at first, but gradually getting bigger until this:
SyriaSyria poison gas attack kills at least 40, activists and medics say
By Dom Calicchio, Travis Fedschun | Fox NewsDozens dead in chemical attack in Syria
Rep. Devin Nunes discusses the region's latest attack.
At least 40 people are reported dead in Syria -- including women and children -- after a poison gas attack on a rebel-held town near the capital on Saturday, as the State Department said the reports, if confirmed, would demand "an immediate response."
The Syrian American Medical Society and opposition-linked Syrian Civil Defense said in a joint statement that at least 40 people had died in the attack in Douma, about 10 miles east of Damascus and over 500 people, mostly women and children, were injured and brought to medical centers.
The injuries included difficulty breathing, foaming at the mouth, and burning of the eyes, according to the organization. It said patients gave off a chlorine-like smell and some had blue skin, a sign of oxygen deprivation.
The alleged attack occurred amid a resumed offensive by Syrian government forces after the collapse of a truce. The Russian-backed Syrian government denied that its forces had launched any chemical attack, Reuters reported. The government said rebels in Douma were in a state of collapse and spreading false news.
This image made from video released by the Syrian Civil Defense White Helmets shows medical workers treating toddlers following an alleged poison gas attack. (Syrian Civil Defense White Helmets via AP)
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The strength of US foreign policy MUST be based on keeping our word.
As it is, we've fallen into a pattern that stretches back at least to World War 2, where we promised the moon plus $2 to get some short-term goal met and we wind up going back on our word.
The law has been laid down. President Trump now owns this.
If he is to save US Foreign Policy and not cause our allies to wither away... since they've come to find out that our word still can't be trusted... then he must act. And he must have acted as soon as he found out about the FIRST of these attacks, which took place weeks ago, just on a much smaller scale.
This isn't even to address the issue of whether our involvement is "right" or "wrong."
Sadly, that is irrelevant.
The President must be perceived as a man of his word. And a man of his word?
He doesn't need to talk. He needs to act. And then, after he's done acting, he can talk all he likes.
In the year of 2018, "threatening" is worthless. After all, how many times have Iran and the NorK's threatened us?
No, this is another failure on the part of President Trump as he continues to play directly into the hands of our enemies.
I cannot condemn the sniveling coward who preceded Mr. Trump for his failures on this issue while giving our current president a pass.
Act first, talk later, Mr. President. Before people stop caring what you have to say... like we did the last guy.
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