Join
a Vigil for Peace & Diplomacy on Sept. 10 from 6 to 7 PM near Rep. John
Sarbanes’ Towson office, corner of Bosley and Allegheny Aves., Towson 21204.
Congratulate Rep. Sarbanes for his word that he will vote for the Iran Deal,
and continue to put pressure on Sen. Ben Cardin to change his mind and vote for
diplomacy, not war.
Can you
help deliver a Thank-You letter to Rep. Sarbanes’ office at 5 PM, just prior to
the vigil? Contact Max at 410-366-1637 or mobuszewski at Verizon dot net.
Wednesday, September 09, 2015
Clinton Wraps Last-Minute
Endorsement of Iran Deal with Hawkish Threats of Military Force
Journalists and foreign policy analysts say speech serves as a
reminder to voters that Clinton is 'prepared for war'
Hillary Clinton, frontrunner for the Democratic nomination,
reflects on the Iran deal and lays out her foreign policy vision should she win
the White House. (Screenshot via CSPAN)
In a speech
addressing the pending Iran nuclear agreement on Wednesday, presidential
hopeful and former Sectary of State Hillary Clinton provided a glimpse into the
possible militaristic future of the United States if, as she said, "I am
in the White House."
Though she endorsed the deal, which seeks to prevent Iran from
obtaining a nuclear weapon by forcing controls onto the country's nuclear
energy program, Clinton vowed that she would do so with skepticism and—as many
have pointed out—an eye on a military alternative.
"The outcome of the deal in Congress is no longer in much
doubt," she said, speaking at the Brookings Institution in Washington
D.C., "so we've got to start looking ahead as to what's next: enforcing
the deal, deter Iran and its proxies, and strengthening our allies," which
was largely in reference to neighboring Israel.
Clinton continued saying that she "understands the
skepticism" around the deal, and said that she too is not convinced.
"There is absolutely no reason to trust Iran," she said.
"This is not the start of some larger diplomatic
opening," she added.
During the address, she made it clear that if Iran
"cheats" on the agreement she "will not hesitate to take
military action."
She said: "Iranians and the world need to understand that
we will act decisively if needed. So here's my message: The United States will
never allow you to acquire a nuclear weapon. As president I will take whatever
actions are necessary to protect the United States and our allies. I will not
hesitate to take military action if Iran attempts to obtain a nuclear
weapon."
Responding to her comments, Middle East political analyst and
founder of Wide Asleep in America Nima Shiraz wrote:
A
shameful speech, bristling with threats, lies, and fake bravado from a person
who loves bombing the Middle East. https://t.co/v3DFXWNJpR
— Nima
Shirazi (@WideAsleepNima) September 9,
2015
Throughout the speech, Clinton repeated what she described as
Iran's "malicious activity"—including allegedly supporting terrorism
and threatening to annihilate "our ally and friend" Israel—and said
what she would do to counter the broader issue of "Iran's bad behavior
across the region."
If elected, Clinton vowed to "deepen America's unshakeable
commitment to Israel's security" by "guaranteeing Israel's
qualitative military edge" in the Middle East. To do so, she said she
would strengthen their missile defense system, and increase military support
and intelligence sharing.
In regards to Clinton's comments on Israel, foreign policy
analyst Ali Gharib quipped:
Clinton:
"I would not support this agreement for one second if I thought it put
Israel in danger." // America second!
— Ali
Gharib (@Ali_Gharib) September 9,
2015
As president, Clinton also said she would "sustain a robust
military presence in the Persian Gulf," increase intelligence sharing and
military support for Gulf allies, and expand the use of "cyber
attacks" and other "non traditional attacks." As for the
conflict in Syria, Clinton called for a "meaningful increase" in the
effort to train and equipment moderate Syrian rebels.
All to which investigative reporter and Intercept editor
Glenn Greenwald responded:
She's
really letting her militarism flag fly proud this morning.... https://t.co/NeI3kFhjA1
— Glenn
Greenwald (@ggreenwald) September 9,
2015
Dissecting her comments afterwards on MSNBC, Steve
Clemons, Washington editor of The Atlantic, said the
speech struck a very "neoconservative" tone.
"This is Hillary Clinton reminding a lot of people in the
Democratic base what they used to be worried about her, that this is a
candidate who's clutch is very much in the position of being prepared for war,
being prepared for conflict, a very dark, muscular side of Hillary
Clinton," Clemons said.
Similarly, Guardian reporter Trevor Timm added:
Today's
speech is a reminder that Hillary Clinton is as pro-war—or more so—than many of
the Republican candidates http://t.co/FfhN73vuT5
— Trevor
Timm (@trevortimm) September 9, 2015
In contrast, Clinton's chief rival for the Democratic
nomination, Sen. Bernie Sanders (Vt.) also gave a speech Wednesday during which
he, too, threw his support behind the Iran deal, likening critics of it to
those who supported the Iraq War in 2003.
"It is my firm belief that the test of a great nation is
not how many wars it can engage in, but how it can resolve international
conflicts in a peaceful manner," he said
in prepared remarks on the Senate floor. "I believe we have an obligation
to pursue diplomatic solutions before resorting to military
engagement—especially after nearly 14 years of ill-conceived and disastrous
military engagements in the region."
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21218. Ph: 410-366-1637; Email: mobuszewski [at] verizon.net. Go to http://baltimorenonviolencecenter.blogspot.com/
"The master class
has always declared the wars; the subject class has always fought the battles.
The master class has had all to gain and nothing to lose, while the subject
class has had nothing to gain and everything to lose--especially their lives."
Eugene Victor Debs
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