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Friday, December 16, 2016

Enforcing a Red Line

So just what can stir our president from his "no drama Obama" cool indifference to aggression?

Russia invaded Georgia. After President Bush responded effectively to save Georgia from complete conquest, President Obama offered a "reset" to Russia.

Iran crushes a democracy movement in Iran. President Obama does nothing and says nothing.

Russian-backed Assad slaughters the Syrian people, including with the use of poison gas that was a "red line" for intervention. No American response.

Russia invaded Ukraine, including a shoot-down of a Malaysian airliner by Russian-backed separatist hand puppets. Little American response.

Iran tries to bomb a Saudi diplomat in Washington, D.C., with a bomb plot. There is no American response.

Chinese cyber-thefts of our economy and defenses rages. There is no apparent American response.

Russians violate nuclear arms agreement on theater nuclear weapons. Muted American response.

Russians hack Democratic emails when it looked like Hillary Clinton would win. No American response.

Trump wins election. Blood and Guts President Obama vows that this Russian cyber-aggression will not stand:

“I think there is no doubt that when any foreign government tries to impact the integrity of our elections . . . we need to take action,” the president said. “And we will — at a time and place of our own choosing. Some of it may be explicit and publicized; some of it may not be.”

Ah. So that's what gets the president angry. Now it is personal.

Mind you, he's talking about Russian hacks of Democratic emails and not foreign government donations to the Clinton Foundation.

But I'm an optimist. So I welcome the new Democratic resolve to stand up to Russian aggression.

UPDATE: Now the Chinese take our stuff. We protested, but don't expect more unless it  impacts Hillary Clinton.

UPDATE: Thanks to Instapundit for the link. Got a "Heh." Just sayin'.

UPDATE: I stand corrected on claiming that there was no American response to the Russians hacking Democratic emails back when it looked like Clinton would win:

“In early September when I saw President Putin in China, I felt that the most effective way to ensure that that didn’t happen was to talk to him directly and tell him to cut it out. There were going to be some serious consequences if he didn’t,” Obama said.

I don't know what more we can expect of our president than telling a foe to "cut it out."

Tip to Instapundit.

UPDATE: The Chinese will give the drone back. So this was a shot across the bow.