With nearly two decades of foreign adventures under its belt, the U.S. government is testing the American people’s patience with never-ending wars.
A project of the ruling class, foreign policy interventionism benefits the military-industrial complex and foreign policy consultants at the expense of Middle Americans whose loved ones are put at risk in far away lands. Even if they come back intact from these foreign excursions, tons of veterans rack up massive mental damage and slip into depression, drug addiction, and even suicide.
Thousands of veterans face such a vicious cycle of self-destruction, and it’s the product of a leadership class that treats military action like it’s a game. However, the real world has consequences. Despite these facts, many political leaders insist on keeping the interventionist status quo.
Some of these include Florida Senator Marco Rubio and Texas Congressman Dan Crenshaw. Since the Tea Party days, Rubio has been a darling the Republican Party. His presidential ambitions were dashed by Donald Trump during the 2015 primaries. However he still remains prominent in GOP circles and is now re-branding himself as an economic populist. Nevertheless, his foreign policy interventionist views remain the same. In a tweet on November 16, 2020, Rubio pushed back against President Trump’s sensible suggestion to withdraw troops from Afghanistan.
Rubio tweeted, “Any plan to reduce U.S. troop levels in #Afghanistan should meet two conditions:
- Enough time to remove military hardware so it doesn’t fall into the hands of the Taliban or Al Qaeda; and
- We maintain the ability to locate, and disrupt,capture or eliminate Al Qaeda leaders.
Any plan to reduce U.S. troop levels in #Afghanistan should meet two conditions:
1. Enough time to remove military hardware so it doesn’t fall into the hands of the Taliban or Al Qaeda; and
2. We maintain the ability to locate, and disrupt,capture or eliminate Al Qaeda leaders
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) November 16, 2020
Dan Crenshaw, one of Conservatism Inc.’s golden boys, also echoed Rubio’s sentiments on Afghanistan withdrawal efforts. Crenshaw is largely viewed as a future GOP star and is largely worshiped by conservative activists due to his military service and relative youth as an upcoming leader. He generally talks a big game about free markets and limited government, the usual conservative tropes. But as far as foreign policy is concerned, Crenshaw is a generic neocon who likely wants a permanent presence of American troops in Afghanistan.
He tweeted on November 17:
Withdrawing troops rapidly might make some people feel better, but it won’t be good for American security. We will be right back in the same place as pre-9/11. No deterrence, no situational awareness, vulnerable to emboldened terrorists.
Withdrawing troops rapidly might make some people feel better, but it won’t be good for American security. We will be right back in the same place as pre-9/11. No deterrence, no situational awareness, vulnerable to emboldened terrorists.https://t.co/yWAmzaN3rr
— Rep. Dan Crenshaw (@RepDanCrenshaw) November 17, 2020
Much to the disappointment of foreign policy restrainers, the Trump administration has been underwhelming on troop withdrawals. This is largely the product of a D.C. establishment that is content with maintaining the status quo of endless conflicts. This is a bipartisan consensus and for change to occur both neocons and neoliberals need to be stripped of their power and influence.
America First activists should remain on watch for neocons and adjacent types who hide in the shadows and talk about “restraint” and “prudence”, but whose actions belie their rhetoric. We cannot afford to have sub-optimal standards for holding elected officials accountable. Continuing the same policy of blindly supporting Republicans will only ensure that endless wars remain in place and that the GOP serve as false opposition to the Left.
For the America First vision to be a reality, we must purge the GOP of these scumbag politicians.
