T. Belman. Vic wrote “Former President Trump is admittedly a flawed individual. It’s impossible to defend his personal behavior and his dishonesty.” and ” Of course, Trump was defeated, whether the election was stolen (as he insists) or not.”
I am disappointed to read these two sentences. I wasn’t aware that he had such a negative opinion of him. I don’t share such a view. Most importantly, I don’t consider him a liar though that is how the press portrayed him.
I can defend his “personal behavior”. He is a great father and family man, notwithstanding his two failed marriages. There are many testimonies to his empathy and charity.
The election was stolen without question.. I am sorry he doesn’t know this or acknowledge it.
By Victor Rosenthal
“The President – whoever he is – has to decide. He can’t pass the buck to anybody. No one else can do the deciding for him. That’s his job.” – Harry S. Truman
The sound that you hear is the crumbling of a great nation. A precipitous fall, not the slow fade out of the Roman Empire, or the much faster dissolution of the British one, but something more akin to the breakup of the Soviet Union. Or the fall of the two towers on 9/11, when the descent began in earnest.
“Precipitous” certainly describes the American retreat from Afghanistan, which was carried out in the middle of the night and without even ensuring the safe exit of all American citizens there, not to mention the thousands of Afghans that had worked with them as interpreters, drivers, mechanics, and so on, who will certainly face vicious retaliation by the Taliban who now control the country. Tens of thousands of weapons, thousands of vehicles, and several hundred aircraft have also fallen into Taliban hands.
I write often about the Israel’s cognitive war with her enemies, which I believe is as important to the ultimate outcome of her struggle to exist as her periodic kinetic battles, but clearly America too is under attack in this realm. The information warriors of Teheran, Beijing, and Moscow – as well as al Qaeda and Hezbollah – have already made use of the catastrophe. I expect that the incidence of terrorist attacks against Americans and even America herself will rise sharply in the near future, encouraged by what they are being told (I think correctly) is an indication of the suicidal weakness of her leadership. And what will those who depend on the US, in Taipei, Seoul, Amman, Tokyo, and yes, Jerusalem, think?
President Biden has blamed his predecessor, but regardless of any commitment made by Trump, the manner of the withdrawal was up to this administration. They screwed up beyond belief, and Biden – personally – bears responsibility. President Truman famously had a sign on his desk stating “The Buck Stops Here.” Biden, regrettably, is an empty shell, propped up by unknown elements who are making critical decisions but taking no responsibility for them. Today, there is no place for the buck to stop. The full dimensions of the catastrophe of the election of a man who suffers from dementia (and who was never more than a mediocrity before) to the highest office in the land are still not known, but this fiasco is a harbinger of worse to come.
I’m not an expert on the military aspects of the US involvement in Afghanistan. But if I had to say when things began to go wrong, I would point to the battle at Tora Bora in December of 2001, when excessive dependence on Afghani and Pakistani “allies” allowed Osama bin Laden to escape into Pakistan. The dash into Afghanistan to capture bin Laden was the right thing to do, and the miscalculation of what was necessary to do it was tragic. Soon after, the processes that would lead to the disaster that is unfolding now became apparent. The unnecessary invasion of Iraq in 2003 was massively expensive and increased America’s foreign debt dangerously. Almost 4,500 Americans were killed and 32,000 wounded, many seriously (the numbers of Iraqi casualties are in dispute, but far greater). The war also greatly increased the influence of the Iranian and Syrian regimes in the region.
At the same time, the psychological and spiritual decline of the US was accelerated by the wars and the financial panic of 2008. While President Bush’s heart was in the right place, his administration displayed a lack of competence in dealing with both foreign and domestic affairs. President Obama was also incompetent, but in addition held the view, now popular on the Left, that America was fundamentally defective in the way it treated its minorities and in its actions in the world (Newt Gingrich called him “the first anti-American president”), and needed to be radically changed.
Since the 1970s, when the real income of the American middle and working classes stagnated, the economic situation of the majority of Americans has become progressively worse. The disappearance of so many jobs in manufacturing, mining, and other blue-collar professions, has been painful. In Tony Horwitz’ book “Spying on the South,” the author asks a resident of a depressed East Texas town “what do people do here?” The answer: “oxy and meth.” The 2008 financial panic struck them badly, with many families losing their homes to foreclosure while the financial sector received bailouts.
Obama’s “they cling to guns and religion” comment was salt in their wounds, as was his encouragement of the spread of pathological political correctness from the academy into everyday life. In a surprising, even revolutionary move, in 2016 the Americans whom Obama disparaged elected Donald Trump.
Former President Trump is admittedly a flawed individual. It’s impossible to defend his personal behavior and his dishonesty. But unlike Obama, he had a good sense of who America’s friends and enemies were, and he went ahead helping the former and hurting the latter. Like the 1977 election of Menachem Begin here in Israel, Trump’s victory stunned those who felt themselves entitled to rule. With the media and the increasingly powerful tech companies who control social media, they orchestrated a massive campaign to portray Trump as a racist, a would-be fascist dictator, and a danger to American democracy. Information about corruption close to Democratic candidate Biden was brutally suppressed on social media, while anti-Trump hyperbole reached stratospheric height.
Of course, Trump was defeated, whether the election was stolen (as he insists) or not. But the man that became president was at best an empty suit, and at worst a puppet. And after the disaster of the withdrawal from Afghanistan, everyone knows it, from America’s allies all over the world to her enemies.
There is a lesson for Israel here, too, if we are ready to learn it. It is nothing new; I’ve been saying it for years: America is a very slender reed to lean on. Our survival depends on our own strength.
# Peloni,
I would change “water”, to “pressure hoses” to match with your hoped for solution.
@Edgar,
You are right, I missed your reference…It is even funnier now that I did, Lol. Your comment about fighting fire with water is very well stated. I hope, should he return to power, he will do exactly that. I think he should clean many houses in Washington from top to bottom should we all be so lucky as to have him back. Hopefully, he will have the opportunity to do so.
#Peloni,
I m aware of the benefits that Trump brought to the civilised world,, even against their wills. My comment about Trump being “good for the Jews” was merely a “reminder” of that very old Yiddishe joke about the two old Jews, standing there in the midst of earth changing activitites where whole areas were devastated, and one, looking at the surrounding catastrophe, said..”but is it good for the Jews”???
It was always the catch-ending of catastrophic events anywhere. .There are 1000 versions of it.
I think Trump’s “imperfections” get more coverage than all his triumphs combined. How he dealt with past business matters are in the realm of BUSINESS, and ALL top business moguls do the very same. THE VERY SAME…and WORSE.
AS President, Trump’s “flaws” and “imperfections” have not hindered the massive changes for the better that transformed America almost overnight. The man was an inexhaustable bundle of energy. I don’t know how it was that he never broke down under the strain.
Maybe if he’d gone to elocution classes before he became President, the critics of his “flaws” might be more muted. Perhaps, like Jackie Mason, he should not have fought “fire” with fire, but with “WATER”…
Perhaps if he’d learnt to drink tea from fragile bone china cups with his little finger fashionably separated from the others……..well????
Trump certainly legitimately can be criticized. However, no other POTUS was even close to as friendly to Israel. His policies were good for Israel. His policies were good for the USA (less regulation, lower taxes, border control).
Did he make mistakes yes and did he jump on friends and supporters too often, certainly.
Even if one does not love Trump or his personality when one sees the disaster Joe Biden is (Afghanistan, the out of control border, stifling USA oil and gas production, higher costs…….) it makes one long for Trump in spite of his imperfection.
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@Ted
Thanks for sharing this, Ted. I have always found Rosenthal to be a source of considerable reason and wisdom, and I have often learned a great deal from his perspectives, even on topics that he espoused my own views, but from a differing basis or foundational thread.
@Edgar
This is true, but to be more accurate, Trump is good for the world and for peaceful coexistence. His policy of returning to the old world order, as it were, of national priorities with the understanding that the US’s adversaries were never of a mind other than this, set the world on a survivable path. There were no wars in his presidency and he significantly reduced US commitments towards the existing wartime commitments.
His flaws, I will leave for someone closer to him to judge and enumerate. My mention of them was only in response to Rosenthal’s comment, but I think your response on this point is well established.
@Edgar
Please forgive typos….. “raise” should be “others”, and they may bea couple more around I’m too lazy to chase down. I have a crnky computer with too-small keys..
My preface was sent to Vic, word for word. He replied and reminded me of Trump’s mistreatment of his contractors.
He went on to ask me about the audits etc. He was willing to learn. “If audits were to show that Trump actually won, what would happen?
Could the election be overthrown and Trump declared president?”
I replied;
@Peloni
100% rignt on all points. But I still need to have the “flaws” explained to me.The seem so egregious that they are ALWYS menioned before any raise faint or considerable. He didn’t go to Harvard or Yale, He grew up working side by side with
his construction teams.
They may be flaws similar to my own. But by what standards are we comparing his flaws to….?? Moshe Rabenu,??? Akiva??? Hillel…?? Surely not Solomon the King…???
Maybe Simon who remained_?_ ensconced on top of a pillar for 30 years defecating all around the base. ???? or was he just a mythical story as are so many. ???
All beside the pont, TRUMP IS GOOD FOR THE JEWS….!!!
Ted is right about Trump.
@peloni…well said!
I am very disappointed to hear that Rosenthal holds these views, as I find them quite difficult to support.
I am not sure how, if you think fraud might be possible, you could be certain the outcome is not in doubt. The fraud was, in fact, very apparent from the very evening of the election, and this was only reinforced, first by the tens of thousands of testimonies of electoral aberrations and later by the vast assets that have been expensed only to the point of not examining the election fraud, or examining it in either a piecemeal approach or an arbitrary basis by those who would know best which boxes of votes not to examine. I understand those liberals who find it difficult to act upon a rational basis that might cost them the political goals that they have achieved with this fraud, but for those who are unencumbered by such liberal skin in the game, as it were, I can not accept such views as being anything but poorly informed or skewed by a personal animus against Trump.
In truth, Donald Trump is a very intelligent man but has, at times, made rough statements that are not couched in political etiquette as any routine politician would do. This is due to the fortunate fact that he is not a politician and speaks his mind plainly and honestly. Such moments of frank speech are often used to abuse him while ignoring the fact that the frank nature of his commentary is due to his honesty in expressing it.
Ted’s comments speak ably to Trump’s character, and his ability to have raised such impressive children without any semblance of scandals that are easily found in the extended families of the most familiar of political names. More than this, though, Trump’s personal character was imprinted upon his policy of equity and reciprocity that he employed across his entire administration to the level that he could extend it. It was the embodiment of these personal traits in his policies that actually offered Israel her greatest opportunity to expose the Pals for their duplicitous practices that had been well taught to them by previous administrations, and the lessons had been too well learned to set aside to win any favor with Trump, even as he gave them the opportunity to do so. Indeed, the Trump doctrine was characterized by treating friend and foe alike on a basis of reciprocal respect and equitable relations while enforcing a measured reckoning for breaching such expected conduct.
So, I am convinced that Trump won a very rigged election, and that Trump, though flawed as we all are, is given to being overtly honest, even to his own detriment, and that his personal outlook of pursuing equity in his policy was his greatest achievement and was the very reason that he has been deposed by those on both the Left and the Right, and by both US seditionists and foreign interlocutors. Though some may think poorly of him, it is likely due to the coordinated propaganda we all suffered through and continue to deal with even today. In truth, Donald Trump is likely the best choice to have sat in the White House in a very very long time.
With respect Vic Rosenthal is the one who is the liar. Simple maths- Pennsylvania had more votes than voters which was ascertained right after the elections. How does Vic explain the vote numbers lessen in real time on a number of TV stations ? Vic should hang his head in shame. Disgusting
” Our survival depends on our own strength.”
I see 2000 years in exile has not humbled you much! Neither did the 70 years of the Babylonian exile teach you lasting lessons!