After Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait in 1990, George H.W. Bush pondered the American response. Bush felt conflicted. On the one hand, he thought it was necessary to force Saddam Hussein out of the oil-rich nation, to maintain the appearance that America was strong in the area. On the other hand, Bush wanted to avoid conflict.
Three weeks after the invasion, Bush had still not made a decision. That’s when he famously accepted a phone call from British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. “Remember, George,” she said, “this is no time to go wobbly.”
Bush didn’t go crazy. Saddam was removed from Kuwait by the United States. This was the first outright military victory in American history.
America is under attack from every direction, due to its foreign policy, especially that of former president Barack Obama.
Last week, the worst terror attack to hit the West since 9/11 took place in southern Israel. 1300 people were killed and 200 were taken hostage.
America’s enemies bet that she would become a wobbly. The bet was on a morally blind media to press Israel to end its offensive in the Gaza Strip to remove the terrorist group Hamas. It was on an active Left interceding to force Biden to put pressure on Israel.
The West will be less safe if the bet is successful.
Here’s why.
Imagine that Israel permits Hamas’s presence in the Gaza Strip. The current ceasefire would result in growing Hamas support among Palestinian Arabs in the West Bank. Israel will also face a new terrorist threat from the East. The muezzin calls were played in mosques throughout Israel to express solidarity with Hamas.
Hezbollah also knows that Israel is surrounded on all sides. It is possible that they could launch an offensive that would end up killing thousands of Jews, putting Israel in danger. Israel appears to have held off on its land-based offensive in order to keep enough troops to the North to prevent a Hezbollah escalation.
Iran could attack Israel due to its growing regional power. This could result in a Sunni/Shiite war of the next level. America will eventually be involved in this conflict. This could lead to a global economic crash.
America can be proud.
This is the role of America. The role is simple and doesn’t need American force.
The United States must provide Israel with the moral and material support it needs in order to defeat Hamas. Israel is willing to shed blood to protect Gazan civilians and to kill terrorists. Israel will require re-armament, and America should provide it. A wounded Israel invites a wider war.
America must use its diplomatic influence to pressure the Arabs and Egypt to help improve the situation. We should encourage Egypt to let refugees pass through its borders, and Turkey to take them in. America needs to leverage Qatar so that it releases Hamas leaders to international organizations, and forces Qatar to release American and other hostages.
America must deter the other players to avoid escalating this conflict. Biden will be in Israel, and there are aircraft carriers in the Mediterranean. Prevention is better than cure.
All of this is doable without expending significant amounts of American treasure or any American blood. But it can only happen if the Biden administration doesn’t go wobbly — if it doesn’t start parroting the dangerous moral equivalence of the media or the absurd perversities of international pseudo-humanitarian organizations that make no demands of Hamas and many demands on Israel.
America’s muscles are impressive even when she does not use them. Yes, we should. Without America, the world would be chaotic and dark. It would also be dangerous for America. This can all be avoided as long as America doesn’t go wobbly.
