NOVEMBER 13, 2013


Global respect for the U.S. in decline

'We coddle our adversaries and give the air to our friends'
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WASHINGTON, D.C. –  Current American foreign policy is eroding respect for the U.S. among allies and enemies alike, according to Dan Weber, president of the Association of Mature American Citizens.

"It's a fact that our relations with Great Britain, France, Germany, Saudi Arabia, Israel and Russia have broken down to one degree or another in recent years because of a fundamental shift to a foreign policy based on appeasement.  We coddle our adversaries and give the air to our friends.  As a result, we look very small in stature these days in the eyes of the world."
The Obama administration has been desperately seeking a rapprochement with Iran from the beginning, in spite of that country's "despicable and deceptive" attitude toward us.  Meanwhile, we tell our friends in the region not to fret about Iran's nuclear program.

Two of our oldest and staunchest allies in the middle east, Israel and Saudi Arabia, are rightfully fearful of the approach the U.S. has taken toward Iran.  As one expert on middle east affairs put it: "diplomacy starts with your friends and if you don't consult them it is obviously going to give rise to suspicion."

Israeli Ambassador to the U.S., Michael Oren, recently was quoted as saying that a "tectonic rift" has erupted between America and Israel.  Britain's Guardian newspaper reported that: "Oren said President Barack Obama made judgments about Israel on the basis of cold calculation in contrast to predecessors George W Bush and Bill Clinton, who were motivated by historical and ideological factors. He suggested that Obama was less likely to be influenced by pro-Israel supporters inside or outside the White House. 'This is a one-man show,' he was quoted as saying."

The Europeans are none too pleased with our foreign policy either.  "You'll recall how Britain's Parliament rebuffed the U.S. call for the country to join us in a coalition to prevent the proliferation of chemical weapons in Syria a few months back," Weber pointed out.  "Ironically, it was Russia - which has its own problems with us these days - that offered a way out of that mess by brokering a deal with Syrian President Assad."

President Obama, himself, has admitted that Russian-American relations have "hit a wall." 
That he and President Putin don't get along is somewhat of an understatement.  "This is basically as bad as it gets.  You typically don't have leaders who so openly criticize each other, who openly disdain each other," according to James Goldgeier, who was Bill Clinton's Russia expert on the National Security Council.

Meanwhile, other important allies in Europe, Germany and France, took umbrage when it was revealed that the U.S. was spying on officials there.  

Weber concluded that it is no wonder that Forbes magazine last week dropped Mr. Obama to second place behind President Putin as the world's most powerful leader.

In its announcement, the magazine said that: "Putin has solidified his control over Russia while Obama's lame duck period has seemingly set in earlier than usual for a two-term president - latest example: the government shutdown mess. Anyone watching this year's chess match over Syria and NSA leaks has a clear idea of the shifting individual power dynamics."

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