Trump's Iran strike puts 2020 primary on edge
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Sanders reminded Democrats once again of his lonely and politically prescient vote against the Iraq war in 2002.
When I voted against the war in Iraq in 2002, I feared that it would result in greater destabilization in that country and in the entire region, Sanders said. At that time, I warned about the deadly so-called unintended consequences of a unilateral invasion. Today, 17 years later, that fear has unfortunately turned out to be a truth.
Sanders, who has positioned himself to the left of the field on foreign policy, was the rare candidate not to go out of his way to assail Soleimani in prepared statements avoiding a rhetorical two-step that could alienate interventionist-leery Democrats.
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In a victory lap Friday, Trump said Soleimani had killed or wounded thousands of Americans and got caught while plotting to kill more. For the Republican president, the political message was simple: Before issuing his statement, Trump had simply tweeted an image of the American flag.
Thus far in the campaign, foreign policy has figured as little more than an afterthought said Andrew Bacevich, the retired Army colonel and longtime professor of international relations. The crisis with Iran, carrying with it the possibility of war, all but obliges the Democratic candidates to take a stand. The real issue is not the escalating tit-for-tat violence, but whether or not to continue in the post-9/11 project of using force to impose order on the Greater Middle East. The effort has produced no positive results. Trump promised to call it off. He has obviously failed. Will the Democrats offer something better?
https://www.politico.com/news/2020/01/03/democrat-2020-iran-trump-soleimani-093615
FYI One of the authors of this article is the daughter of a D.U. member.