I took the day off work in preparation for the vacation the Sims family leaves on tomorrow morning (laundry, etc.).
Well I did something this morning that isn’t really something I’d usually do, and that would be to turn on Joe Scarborough’s morning show on MSNBC. Well Joe’s absent today, with a man and woman whose names I cannot remember hosting in his place.
The big point is that former Presidential candidate and Democratic U.S. Senator (and Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chair) Joe Biden was on as one part of a two-headed response to Joe Lieberman’s yawn-worthy and frighteningly short-sighted op-ed piece on Barack Obama’s foreign policy.
Some highlights from Senator Biden’s Journal response:
At the heart of this [foreign policy] failure is an obsession with the “war on terrorism” that ignores larger forces shaping the world: the emergence of China, India, Russia and Europe; the spread of lethal weapons and dangerous diseases; uncertain supplies of energy, food and water; the persistence of poverty; ethnic animosities and state failures; a rapidly warming planet; the challenge to nation states from above and below.
Instead, Mr. Bush has turned a small number of radical groups that hate America into a 10-foot tall existential monster that dictates every move we make.
The election in November is a vital opportunity for America to start anew. That will require more than a great soldier. It will require a wise leader.
Here, the controversy over engaging Iran is especially instructive.
Last week, John McCain was very clear. He ruled out talking to Iran. He said that Barack Obama was “naïve and inexperienced” for advocating engagement; “What is it he wants to talk about?” he asked.
Well, for a start, Iran’s nuclear program, its support for Shiite militias in Iraq, and its patronage of Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza.
Beyond bluster, how would Mr. McCain actually deal with these dangers? You either talk, you maintain the status quo, or you go to war. If Mr. McCain has ruled out talking, we’re stuck with an ineffectual policy or military strikes that could quickly spiral out of control.
President Nixon didn’t demand that China end military support to the Vietnamese killing Americans before meeting with Mao. President Reagan didn’t insist that the Soviets freeze their nuclear arsenal before sitting down with Mikhail Gorbachev. Even George W. Bush – whose initial disengagement allowed dangers to proliferate – didn’t demand that Libya relinquish its nuclear program, that North Korea give up its plutonium, or even that Iran stop aiding those attacking our soldiers in Iraq before authorizing talks.
The net effect of demanding preconditions that Iran rejects is this: We get no results and Iran gets closer to the bomb.
Equally unwise is the Bush-McCain fixation on regime change. The regime is abhorrent, but their logic defies comprehension: renounce the bomb – and when you do, we’re still going to take you down. The result is that Iran accelerated its efforts to produce fissile material.
The Bush-McCain saber rattling is the most self-defeating policy imaginable. It achieves nothing. But it forces Iranians who despise the regime to rally behind their leaders. And it spurs instability in the Middle East, which adds to the price of oil, with the proceeds going right from American wallets into Tehran’s pockets.
The worst nightmare for a regime that thrives on tension with America is an America ready, willing and able to engage. Since when has talking removed the word “no” from our vocabulary?
It’s amazing how little faith George Bush, Joe Lieberman and John McCain have in themselves – and in America.
Along with this excellently-written piece, Mr. Biden floored me this morning with his outstanding verbal repudiation of Mr. Lieberman’s barely-veiled John McCain stump piece. And not only did he eloquently and firmly shame Mr. Lieberman, he firmly planted himself in my heart with a comment about Mr. McCain’s attacks on Mr. Obama.
Mr. Biden called out Mr. McCain on his persistent use of logical fallacies in his attempts to discount Mr. Obama’s experience. He specifically cited the argumentum ad hominem fallacy, and in doing so, impressed me greatly as the only one who will say it.
For about a year now, I’ve strongly wondered if I couldn’t make a decent living as a pundit who does nothing but point out all the fallacious arguments politicians employ throughout campaigns, debates, or whatever it is that they happen to be doing. Thank you for the encouragement, Mr. Biden.
The last few weeks have seen Mr. Biden very obviously inserting himself into the public realm, ostensibly campaigning for a high-powered role in the Obama campaign and (hopefully) the eventual Obama Presidency.
I want Joe Biden as Vice President.
He nullifies any inexperience argument–foreign policy, economic or otherwise. His message throughout his nomination campaign and afterward has been similar to Mr. Obama’s message of change–he spent much of his time this morning describing our absolute necessity for “conduct change.” He’s an excellent debater–something Mr. Obama could admittedly use some advice on.
I don’t know how long Mrs. Clinton will hang around, if it’s to the convention or if she’ll bow out beforehand, but it’s very obvious that the Obama campaign has aimed themselves toward the general election.
Mr. Obama’s running mate will prove to be a most important choice. Joe Biden would be a tremendous choice for this nation.