President Obama emphatically and repeatedly told American voters and ‘the world’ that his administration would re-engage with the world. Implicit in his foreign policy speeches was that by not being a George Bush unilateralist, ‘the world’ would help us with important things like Iran and stopping nuclear proliferation.
The Obama administration’s naivete has been repeatedly been exposed, starting with Iran belittling the Obama administration by outright rejecting Obama administration overtures.
After the Christmas Day attempted terrorist attack, President Obama ordered heightened security at U.S. airports. He also asked for worldwide cooperation. Based on this article, he isn’t getting worldwide cooperation:
On the first day of what was supposed to be tighter screening ordered by the United States for airline passengers from certain countries, some airports around the world have conceded they had not cracked down.
The U.S. demanded more careful screening for people who are citizens of, or are flying from, 14 nations deemed security risks. But enforcement of the U.S. rules appeared spotty Monday.
“Everything is the same. There is no extra security,” said an aviation official in Lebanon, one of the countries on the list. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly.
Thus far, President Obama’s re-engagement policies haven’t worked. First, he pulled missile defenses from Poland and the Czech Republic in hopes of Russia putting pressure on Iran. Instead, Putin’s puppet essentially said “Thanks for the gift. No thanks on pressuring Iran.”
The Obama administration made overtures towards Iran to stop their nuclear weapons program. On the last day before the deadline, Iran said No Thanks.
Now the Obama administration has told airports around the world to be more careful screening passengers who are headed for the United States. Apparently, they’ve said no, too.
This was predictable.
I’ve repeatedly said that it isn’t important to be liked by the world, that it’s important to be respected. That’s what I call the Reagan Principle. President Reagan knew the value of putting a steel fist inside a velvet glove. The Obama administration has the velvet glove part right. In fact, I’d argue that it’s too enamored with velvet gloves.
Based on their actions, I’m beginning to wonder if the Obama administration doesn’t believe in a policy of hiding a velvet glove inside a velvet glove.
Whatever the case, it’s time President Obama focused less on befriending the world and spent more time focusing on demanding the world’s respect and cooperation. If he doesn’t make that transition, then the United States’ reputation around the world will suffer greatly.
It’s important that the terrorists understand that there is a downside to attempting terrorist attacks against the United States.
Technorati: Security, Airports, President Obama, National Security, Terrorists, Attacks, Nuclear Proliferation, Russia, Iran, Poland, Czech Republic, Missile Defense, International Cooperation
Cross-posted at California Conservative