by Harry Riley
Dear Friend:
This week we were introduced to headlines like this about some overly enthusiastic Marines that thankfully walked away from a firefight with the Taliban:
“Are U.S. soldiers out of control?”
“Elite fighters desecrating the bodies of dead Taliban…”
“Muslim groups furious…”
“Shocking video…”
“Huge setback in talks with the Taliban…”
By now you may have already heard about the young Marines responsible for killing Taliban fighters and then exercising some human natural functions on top of them as part of their actions on the enemy objective.
Below is the video in question of these brave young Marines on the enemy objective (warning graphic material). [What I didn’t see mentioned is these lumps of dead filth just killed seven buddies of these Marines.]
The incident was distasteful and inappropriate and the Marines should be assigned non-judicial punishment – but do the Secretaries of Defense and State need to make over-the-top, wild-eyed statements about the conduct of our Marines that were engaged in mortal combat with the enemy?
Since the video above first surfaced, not only have two cabinet secretaries involved themselves in the affair with highly publicized statements, a three star general was assigned to investigate the matter and the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, NCIS, was assigned to track and hunt down the person responsible for shooting the movie. Top defense department officials are now considering leveling criminal charges against the Marines involved.
Why do we see so much consternation and hand wringing from the Obama administration when brave Marines urinate on dead Taliban bodies?
Because the Obama administration views diplomacy as America’s endgame in Afghanistan- and “an accord,” must occur before the end of President Obama’s first term in order for him to deliver on his election promises to his leftist voter base. The Obama administration needs this agreement so they have something to take back to voters as a sign of visible efforts to wrap up our decade long efforts in Afghanistan.
ABC News reported the following:
The video surfaced after the U.S. government announced it was holding tacit peace talks with the Taliban that could possibly include a prisoner exchange, but a Taliban spokesperson reportedly said the footage will not have an impact.
“This is not a political process, so the video will not harm our talks and prisoner exchange because they are at the preliminary stage,” spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said Thursday, according to a Reuters report. Navy Seal and Silver Star recipient Leif Babin summed up the situation with fairly levelheaded commentary.
Navy Seal and Silver Star recipient Leif Babin summed up the situation with fairly levelheaded commentary.
This issue is no longer just about the conduct of these Marines – it’s about the strategy of an administration desperate to score political points at the expense of Marines – part and parcel of a larger effort to pull out of Afghanistan before the mission is accomplished.
The Obama administration views an agreement with the Taliban, as political cover for withdrawing from Afghanistan by 2014 – and this administration needs that announcement to happen before November 6, 2012 – Election Day. Judging from the fury of the top two cabinet secretaries, the leadership of the Marine Corps and investigative resources invested in determining whom the Marines are in the video; it appears that this is a top White House priority.
There can be no meaningful negotiation with a brutal and savage enemy that has shown complete unwillingness to abide by the same laws of war that America is bound to. The Taliban are not a sovereign state power and they have shown no inclination to adhere to lasting agreements.
Even if an agreement were to be had, and I believe that this White House will move aggressively to cement one before November, it would require the same amount of effort we are currently expending in the form of kinetic combat operations for many years beyond 2014.
The most recent example of post-combat operations in which peace agreements were monitored is in Ireland where the IRA laid down their weapons. The decommissioning process would take years and require a heavy military presence in order to collect the heavy arms and ammunition the Taliban hold in their possession. Further hampering these efforts is the fragmented nature of the Taliban. They are not an autonomous organization operating within the framework of traditional sovereign states. No lasting agreements can be counted on when there is no governing structure on the part of the parties to uphold and enforce the agreement.
What the Taliban are is a brutal regime capable of the most extreme and heinous acts of terrorism and radical Islamism. A 2010 cover of Time Magazine featured a beautiful Afghani girl named Aisha, “a shy 18-year-old Afghan woman who was sentenced by a Taliban commander to have her nose and ears cut off for fleeing her abusive in-laws.” The photo is just one of example of the thousand acts of barbarity that the Taliban use as a mechanism to govern the people of Afghanistan – illustrative of those who we are negotiating with.
The sheer brutality of this particular enemy demands that we not make concessions, for example – in the form of Gitmo prisoner swamps, but instead systematically eliminate our enemies that are actively trying to kill American forces. During the GOP presidential debate in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina this week, Governor Romney forcefully announced the same policy position.
Ronald Reagan said that, “Of the four wars in my lifetime none came about because the U.S. was too strong.” Now is the time for an American military resurgence in order to mount robust offensive operations against the Taliban and to counter the other threats that America faces around the globe. President Obama is fond of saying that, “the tide of war is receding,” and that may be true in terms of his administration’s political strategy, but the threats America faces disagree.
We face a mix of state and non-state actors that are challenging America’s national security and that of our allies. Iran is developing nuclear weapons, China is building its missile and naval forces and Russia is waiting for Obama to remove missile defense systems from Europe as agreed to in the most recent START treaty. Additionally, Somali pirates are challenging commercial shipping lanes, and Mexican drug cartels are fighting American law enforcement officers on American soil.
Today is not the time for cabinet secretaries to engage in hand ringing and teeth gnashing about the inappropriate actions of young Marines pumped full of adrenaline after a firefight with the enemy. Now is not the time to give in to the Taliban or allow American military forces to fall into decline – now is the time for America to rebuild and renew its military forces in preparation for the next American century.
With Confidence,
Joel Arends
Chairman
Veterans for a Strong America
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