American knowledge of all things political, both at home and abroad, is remedial compared to the rest of the world...especially Europe. Most Americans think they know what's going on because their news feed gives them the perspective they enjoy, but very few have a sense of things. Euros, probably because of proximity, pay a lot closer attention. I know one thing for sure, when I fly from Europe to the US, the average knowledge of politics increases in both places.
Arguing that because you're American, you know more about America, is one of our great problems. We are growing myopically stupider by the day.
For the debates, I would love to see a few questions that are fact-based. "Mr. Trump, who is the current leader of Germany, and what title do they go by?" "Mr. Biden, who is the King of Saudi Arabia?" I think Americans deserve to see how much each truly understands the players and the game.
Give them buzzers... let's play political jeopardy. We'll see how slow Joe is and how little Trump knows, all while learning a bit about the world around us.
That last bit about the debates has been on my mind for a while. Biden has an opportunity to show off his decades of experience with fact-based status quo information. Trump likes to fall back on âI canât tell you because itâs a high level secretâ which is horribly transparent - so a fact based debate, especially NOT based in asking about the future (TFGâs speciality: promise and never deliver. See also big beautiful wall that Mexico pays for, repeal and replace the ACA, etc), but asking about what is factual and straightforward and something that they should both know. I agree that a Final Jeopardy fill-in-the-card-and-show-it format would be so flipping entertaining.
American knowledge of all things political, both at home and abroad, is remedial compared to the rest of the world...especially Europe. Most Americans think they know what's going on because their news feed gives them the perspective they enjoy, but very few have a sense of things. Euros, probably because of proximity, pay a lot closer attention. I know one thing for sure, when I fly from Europe to the US, the average knowledge of politics increases in both places.
Arguing that because you're American, you know more about America, is one of our great problems. We are growing myopically stupider by the day.
For the debates, I would love to see a few questions that are fact-based. "Mr. Trump, who is the current leader of Germany, and what title do they go by?" "Mr. Biden, who is the King of Saudi Arabia?" I think Americans deserve to see how much each truly understands the players and the game.
Give them buzzers... let's play political jeopardy. We'll see how slow Joe is and how little Trump knows, all while learning a bit about the world around us.
American voters are remarkably ignorant when it comes to foreign policy. They've also forgotten Trump's pattern of deferential behavior towards Putin as well as his irrational hatred of Ukraine. He was (is?) convinced that Ukraine hid Hilary Clinton's servers and contributed to intelligence concerns that his campaign was cooperating with Russians. Trump repeatedly stated he thought NATO was pointless, deliberately held up military aid to Ukraine and indicated that he would not necessarily commit to honoring the U.S.'s commitments to providing assistance to its allies—esp. Ukraine—in the event of an attack.
There is next to nothing to support the notion that Putin was deterred from invading Ukraine because of Trump's presidency.,
Furthermore, there isn't a great deal of logic at work in Putin's invasion of Ukraine. His plan was based on the wildly unrealistic notion that the West would simply allow Russia to swallow Ukraine and that the Ukrainians would simply roll over. Putin assumed there'd be no long-term consequences. As things stand now, Russia has become a near vassal state of China.
The op-ed you referenced is also shockingly uniformed about Trump's responsibility for the collapse of Afghanistan.
May 19, 2020 â In releasing its quarterly report on Afghanistan, the DOD inspector generalâs office says the U.S. cut troop levels in Afghanistan by more than 4,000, even though âthe Taliban escalated violence further after signing the agreement.â
âU.S. officials stated the Taliban must reduce violence as a necessary condition for continued U.S. reduction in forces and that remaining high levels of violence could jeopardize the U.S.-Taliban agreement,â according to the report, which covered activity from Jan. 1, 2020, to March 31, 2020. âEven still, the United States began to reduce its forces in Afghanistan from roughly 13,000 to 8,600.â
Aug. 18, 2020 â In releasing a report that covered activity in Afghanistan from April 1, 2020, to June 30, 2020, the Defense Department inspector generalâs office says, âThe Taliban did not appear to uphold its commitment to distance itself from terrorist organizations in Afghanistan. UN and U.S. officials reported that the Taliban continued to support al-Qaeda, and conducted joint attacks with al-Qaeda members against Afghan National Defense and Security Forces.â
Sept. 18, 2020 â At a press conference, Trump says, âWeâre dealing very well with the Taliban. Theyâre very tough, theyâre very smart, theyâre very sharp. But, you know, itâs been 19 years, and even they are tired of fighting, in all fairness.â
Nov. 16, 2020 â Congressional Republicans, responding to newsreports that the Trump administration will rapidly reduce forces in Afghanistan, warn of what Sen. Marco Rubio calls âa Saigon-type of situationâ in Afghanistan. âA rapid withdrawal of U.S. forces from Afghanistan now would hurt our allies and delight the people who wish us harm,â Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says.
Nov. 17, 2020 â Acting Secretary of Defense Christopher Miller formally announces that the U.S. will reduce U.S. forces in Afghanistan to 2,500 by Jan. 15, 2021.
On the same day, the Defense Department IGâs office released a report for the quarter ending Sept. 30, 2020, that said the peace negotiations between the Afghan government and Taliban representatives had stalled and violence increased. âAt the same time, the Taliban increased its attacks against Afghan forces, leading to âdistressingly highâ levels of violence that could threaten the peace agreement,â the report said.
The IG report also continued to warn that the Taliban was apparently violating the withdrawal agreement. âThis withdrawal is contingent on the Taliban abiding by its commitments under the agreement, which include not allowing terrorists to use Afghan soil to threaten the United States and its allies,â the report said. âHowever, it was unclear whether the Taliban was in compliance with the agreement, as members of al-Qaeda were integrated into the Talibanâs leadership and command structure.â
Jan. 15 â âToday, U.S. force levels in Afghanistan have reached 2,500,â Miller, the acting defense secretary, says in a statement. âhis drawdown brings U.S. forces in the country to their lowest levels since 2001.â
Afghanistanâs First Vice President Amrullah Saleh tells the BBC that the Trump administration made too many concessions to the Taliban. âI am telling as a friend and as an ally that trusting the Taliban without putting in a verification mechanism is going to be a fatal mistake,â Saleh says, adding that Afghanistan leaders warned the U.S. that âviolence will spikeâ as the 5,000 Taliban prisoners were released. âViolence has spiked,â he added.
In February 2020, the Trump administration signed an agreement with the Taliban in Doha, Qatar, in which the U.S. promised to fully withdraw its troops by May 2021. The Taliban committed to several conditions, including stopping attacks on American and coalition forces. The stated objective was to promote a peace negotiation between the Taliban and the Afghan government, but that diplomatic effort never gained traction before Biden took office in January 2022.
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Indeed, in the end, the new report said that the Afghans were still heavily dependent on U.S. air support for strikes and emergency evacuations, and also on U.S. contractors to maintain and repair aircraft and other systems.
But all agree that the Doha agreement was a lynchpin in the collapse.
âThe signing of the Doha agreement had a really pernicious effect on the government of Afghanistan and on its military â psychological more than anything else, but we set a date-certain for when we were going to leave and when they could expect all assistance to end,â Gen. Frank McKenzie told Congress last year.
McKenzie, who was then the top U.S. general in the Middle East and has since retired, argued to keep 2,500 U.S. troops there, as did Milley.
The Doha agreement, said the SIGAR report, led the Afghan population and its military to feel abandoned. And the Trump administrationâs decision to limit U.S. airstrikes against the Taliban stopped any progress the Afghans were making, and left them unable and eventually unwilling to hold territory, it said.
Beyond his name being painted on the side... it shows up at his rallies at the same time as Trump, has a tail number, files flight plans with the FAA, and is generally trackable every time it moves?
Itâs common to read about movies that are shown in most of the world but not released in, say, Russia or, more often, China. Should âThe Apprenticeâ end up widely available globally but not, for political reasons, in the United States, it will be a sign of democratic decay, as well as an augur of greater self-censorship to come. After all, if anxiety about enraging Trump is already shaping what you can and cannot watch, itâs probably bound to get even worse if he actually returns to power.
In 2017, when he was frustrated that his attorney general, Jeff Sessions, wasnât protecting him from the investigation into his Russia ties, Trump exclaimed, âWhereâs my Roy Cohn?â The uncertain fate of âThe Apprenticeâ demonstrates that he no longer needs to replace the man, because heâs got a whole movement instead.
Would networks fear a Biden movie? Do major brands (Netflix, Comcast, etc.) fear everything that could upset the radical left or right?
Beyond his name being painted on the side... it shows up at his rallies at the same time as Trump, has a tail number, files flight plans with the FAA, and is generally trackable every time it moves?
Beyond his name being painted on the side... it shows up at his rallies at the same time as Trump, has a tail number, files flight plans with the FAA, and is generally trackable every time it moves?
