Tom Finneran: Playing Dangerous Defense

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Friday, March 14, 2014

Tom Finneran, GoLocalWorcester MINDSETTER™

“Mr. President, this makes no sense. Not now. Not in twenty years. Not in fifty years. It’s reckless. It’s dangerous. And it puts the nation at terrible risk. You are the President of a unique nation. You have a unique responsibility. Don’t do this.”

Such words impart knowledge of the past, fear of the future, and the urgency of now. As such, they are more compelling than the abstract words used in the Constitution which oblige the Congress “to provide for the national defense”. Would that the more fearful and urgent words were uttered in the Oval Office sometime in the last thirty days.

President Obama has proposed a defense budget for the coming year which would shrink our armed forces to levels not seen since the 1930s. For those with some sense of history you will recall that we ranked about 14^th in the world at that precarious historical moment. We were a most unserious, unprepared, frivolous nation of about 130 million. The Atlantic and Pacific oceans were our greatest military advantages. Had we been less protected by such mighty waters, world history would have taken a profoundly different direction with ugly, exterminating consequences for untold millions.

The constitutional obligation of providing for the national defense should not, in my opinion, excite or inflame partisan battle. It is the foremost constitutional principle and therefore it should unite Americans rather than divide them. As weary as we might be of Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Egypt, Syria, Iran, Russia, China, and North Korea, weariness is better than enslavement. That roster of regimes bears us a very menacing ill will. Are there Democrats or Republicans who disagree about that? Are there Democrats or Republicans who think that shrinkage of our military capacity is a good thing for world peace?

Peace flows from strength. Civilized nations appreciate the existence of a good cop. Bullies fear a good cop. Americans are not a war-like people. But for Vietnam, the last century showed an emerging America which responded to arms only when provoked. No one wants war—not the generals who strategize, nor the troops who fight, not America’s mothers, nor America’s fathers. But should war come, should we not be prepared?

“You might not be interested in war, but war is interested in you.” So spoke the lunatic Russian revolutionary Trotsky many years ago. Trotsky has bred many violent offspring. They exist all over the world and they fiercely resent America. In the face of such hard cold facts why would we disarm? Has the dreamy “peace” of Woodstock become our nation’s policy? Are we deranged?

America should smile upon all nations, listen to all nations, be reasonable with all nations, and bristle to the teeth with modern armament. Stand solidly with allies and let bullies know that there are limits to our natural patience and forbearance.

Frightful (and helpful) American naval forces should cruise the world’s oceans. Unmatched American air forces should patrol the world’s skies. And Army and Marine forces should drill, drill, drill. There is no better deterrent to war than to show the world a robust capacity to make it. Call it the paradox of peace, but preparation for war gives real peace its best chance. The mad and the ambitious are more likely to test a weakling, less likely to test a warrior.

The recent “lead from behind” drama in Syria was instructive. Britain and France, two of the world’s alleged “great powers”, had to ask us for planes, guns, and ammunition! They are two serious and significant nations who lack the military hardware and capacity to follow through on what they deem critical national matters! My oh my how far the mighty have fallen. Yet the President’s proposed defense budget would mimic the chosen path of Britain and France, severely limiting our ability to protect American interests and allies around the world. China is certainly smiling. Russia too.

Should Congress accept the President’s defense proposal, the smiles of our global foes will turn to giddiness, to be soon followed by aggression. Let’s hope that Congress sees world events more clearly than the President’s advisers. Congress may be understandably reluctant to add to and accelerate the lame duck status of the Administration, but better that than to cripple America’s ability to lead in a volatile world. We are playing dangerous defense.

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