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Texas Gov. Rick Perry offered the broad outlines of his foreign policy philosophy at an annual gathering of veterans Monday, telling attendees that he opposes "military adventurism" while also advocating for "taking the fight to the enemy" and decrying indecision by "multi-lateral debating societies" at times of international crisis.
"We must renew our commitment to taking the fight to the enemy wherever they are, before they strike at home. I do not believe that America should fall subject to a foreign policy of military adventurism," he said at the annual convention of Veterans of Foreign Wars in San Antonio. "We should only risk shedding American blood and spending American treasure when our vital interests are threatened."
But Perry -- who did not specifically critique American involvement in the ongoing conflicts in Afghanistan, Syria, or Libya -- added that while American military leaders should honor and coordinate with allies around the world, too much collaboration with other nations could put U.S. soldiers at risk.
"We must be willing to act when it is time to act," he said to a crescendo of applause during his remarks. "We cannot concede the moral authority of our nation to multi-lateral debating societies. And when our interests are threatened, American soldiers should be led by American commanders."
"I say this because we owe to them and to their loved ones the commitment that any war is led by the country with the most advanced technology and the best training," he added.
The Texas governor, who served in the Air Force and whose father is a World War II veteran, made a special point to laud veterans of the Vietnam War, saying that soliders at that time faced the uncertainty of "not knowing at times when the enemy lurked among them in the civilian population" as well as the dithering of leaders in Washington were "not prepared to win" the conflict.
Perry was invited to speak at the convention in his role as the governor of the state of its host city, San Antonio. He is scheduled to campaign in Oklahoma this afternoon.
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Perry/Texas uses stimulus money to create jobs and then criticizes the fed govt, while taking credit for jobs?????
Guess you can fool Texans more than once (Re: GWB).
The reason I feel Bush and Obama are doing the right thing in Afghanistan is that the Taliban had created a haven for Al Qaida. You can't take out one without taking out the other. If you simply attack and then leave, the Taliban simply sets up shop again.
The key is that we were attacked and have a right to defend ourselves. This is the principle difference between Afghanistan and the wars we chose to enter in Iraq and Libya.
Also, once you get involved somewhere the consequences of pulling out accelerate. While we probably could get out Libya now, we were hooked into Iraq the moment we set foot there. Once you go, the consequences of getting out accelerate.
My main issue with Ron Paul is that he wants to turn back the clock and pull out everywhere. It's too late to change the past. We have to stay out to begin with if we don't want to get involved.
I favor drones over troops in both Afghanistan and Pakistan. Once Al Qaida and other groups planning attacks on the free world are gone we can bring the drones home too. (and it provides an incentive to nations thinking about hosting terrorists)
I agree with Perry. Let's start by giving him a weapon and sending him to the front lines. I'm positive that with all his patriotic gun-waving-in-the-air fervor he would be only too happy to go.
I just have one question for this idiot !!! does he mean starting wars with North Korea and Iran ???
I might be inclined to agree if we hadn't lost more people in Afghanistan and Iraq than we did on Sept 11th. Let those pieces of crap slap us in the face. Watch us ignore, beef protection, rebuild, and stand resilient. As a matter of fact, it's something from the bible that I've NEVER seen any politician follow...
well, we turned what should have been a police or navy seals action into an all out war.
Ponder this one
Timothy Mc Veigh was a terrorist too..... why didn't we send a cruise missile to his home to get rid of him? why only the FBI and police?
another half-assed cowboy that learned his international diplomacy from the ihop.
why not go ALL the way
Perry - Cheney in 2012 ! a winning combo
So, this is what I see: a bunch of left wingers who really are afraid, perhaps justifiably, that a right wing nationalist might be elected POTUS; a bunch of right wingers who are afraid that they just might not have a viable candidate to overthrow the incumbent POTUS in the 2012 election.
Woe to the nation that dwells in fear.
Folks, it is our own trepidation and cowardice that we must fear, after all, the "leaders" we elect are nothing more than reflections of our own ineptitude and paranoia. The American electorate is a mass of gullible, easily led herd animals tending to follow the one wearing the bell.
Our political leaders (I hate that word being used to describe the despicable rodents that habitate in Washington DC) don't give a damn about us despite their cries otherwise. They refer to the as the great unwashed masses and, perhaps rightfully, have little or no respect for our thoughts, opinions and/or welfare. We represent votes and dollars which they spend many hours devising elaborate schemes to relieve us of both.
Wake up!
I am a Texan. If the world thought W was an abomination, you ain't seen nothin yet. Rick Perry makes W appear intelligent and insightful.
Poor W was protected, coddled, and packaged. But Perry? Intelligence of a small rock and scruples of a rattlesnake.
My apologies to America for turning out these cretins, but I would suggest not making the same mistake twice.
Makes me appreciate Texas more boudreaux.... Hope you have lots of friends; hang inthere
He does not appear intelligent or insightful, he appears to be a man who is using religion and biases to get votes. I have yet to see one statement by him that isn't completely self serving. GW Bush wasn't a monster, he was manipulated by others. Perry is out there debasing the constitution to suit his own agenda, and that is to make more money to the top 1%.
Why is that Feistyredhead always gets the first post on these mud-slinging fests, mislabeled as discussions? I caught a story once on MSNBC before anyone posted...I tried to post, and it wouldn't let me. I guess Feisty hadn't called up her supporters yet to swamp the thread. If I was running the show, you would have to pass a test on politics before being able to post, with zero room for name-calling and other toddler behavior.
All the name-calling and uninformed postings make this not worth viewing anymore. I need to program an auto-link so that MSNBC never pops up anymore, and goes to another media outlet with some credibility. Even if you disagree with someone's opinion, there needs to be a helpful and respectful discourse. I have yet to see one here.
Stop whining and get up early. Republicans set the tone for this years ago. You just resent being treated the way you treat others.
Nice bit of irony there, your post is insulting everyone that has been involved in the discussion. Hello pot meet the kettle.
Little Wolfe, for the most part you are correct. This is one tough liberal blog. However, I have found that it is way more fun than going to Fox where most everyone is in agreement on the other side. Dems are pretty easy to mess with. But every now and then, there are some, which I won't name names, but they work in the medical profession, that if you hold their hands and pull them out of the Dem mud, you can actually have a nice discussion with them. They turn out to be respectful and are very good at articulating their case. It takes a little work to seek them out, but they are there.
Perry seems to be a top notch fence sitter. He is on both sides of every point.
Perfectly spineless.
Has he ever served in the military? This guy seems to act like the military is a tool to reach political objectives. Atleast the current president has much respect and admiration for us who have served. Its one thing to fight overseas to defend our country, its another to fight so some oil company can get the rights to drill. While we're at it, I'm all for bringing back a war tax. The price of war, They have to be paid for somehow. We'd see just how long combat operations last then.
Perry was a C130 pilot in the Air Force and left with the Rank of Captain
If this nincompoop is the best the Repub party can offer, they have surely lost my vote this time around.
I was in the military stationed overseas for years. If we follow Mr. Perry's advise and reasoning. The United States will have no allies. As far people saying "Stop blaming Bush that was so long ago". 3 years is not that long ago. Wars and people dying are not some app you can download instantly or remove instantly from your phone. They are actual real people that were alive and breathing and have families that love them very much. As Vet and to suggest that Bush/Cheney hold no accountability for my fellow soldiers that did not return to their families or did came back but left an actual piece of themselves behind makes me so angry. I can close my eyes and see the images as if it were yesterday. In Libya 0 Americans dead and Trillions were not spent. I want all those critics to justify their support for when Bush sent us over there and that thousands of dead American soldiers is better than 0 in Libya.
MTATL
bravo for your reality check, well written and honestly told
"We must renew our commitment to taking the fight to the enemy wherever they are,
before they strike at home."
In other words, a vote for Perry is a vote for war.
This slick politician is such a hypocrite, and his campaign slogan should be " Adios MO" a quote from old Rick the Preacher Perry. This Texan of 60 years is so embarassed by much of the media like CNN that appears to be praising this creatin who's hitched his star on the Tea Party Express! Even Jack Cafferty is getting downright embarassing drooling over this Texas that's all hat no cattle oil barron greedy politician. I just sure hope they don't fall for his BS, and will see his true colors when he has to debate anyone with a brain! He makes former President Bush look like an Einstein with a huge heart! I will say this guy is good at hiding his evil intentions! Hopefully not all Americans are as stupid as many here in Texas who support this fool! He would be the nail in the coffin for this Country!
Perry is not unlike the old time cowpokes on the silver screen so may years ago only Perry kisses his hoss and rides away on the gal into the rising moon.To be truly appreciative of this carpetbagger yall need to see him in black and white as color does him no justice. His idea of Foreign Policy is talking to a Mexican American that just shined his boots or going out of the country to get insurance. All pols are wonderous at talking a lot and saying absolutely nothing but Perry does it in his sleep.
We don't need any more wars and we can't afford them either. Lately, we can't even win them and the enemy only has RPGs and explosives in the ground. The main reason we hang around those countries is because we want bases close to China. This intimidates China. Its not good to mess around with China. We have enough trouble with the small less advanced countries that have only rockets and explosives.
Preident Obama speaking in Minneapolis at 11AM this morning to the American Legion int he Minneapolis Covention center stressed the commitment to veterans of all wars and paid special tribute to Viet Nam war Veterans . He stressed the number of Viet Nam vets visits to the White House.
He also said that the troop draw downs in Afganistan would continue and the Iraq withdrawal will be complete this year. . The president specifically mentioned th ekilling of Osma Bin Laden, but did not dwell on it-linking it to a broader chain of events including getting the Afgans to pick uop security as Al Qudea is destroyed.
The President mention Libya as military action for the first time in his speech-highlighting that it hapoped and saying little else about it-except to take credit for Gaddifi's defeat. Gaddifi wasn't mentioned by name.
Obamac ounter Perrys comments about "agressiveness " by stressing the fights in Helmand and the western Afgan areas in his speech-underling his his own verison of "take it to the enemy'.
Obama stressed vetrans aid and highlighted the despite thetreat of goverment shutdown he had made sure troops wer funded-and thenation secure. Obama said "we willn ot balance thebudget of the backs of the vterans who have served and sacrificed" and got wone of the largest appluse lines, second onlyto whenhe mention Congress shutdown and his own efforts for the troops.
Obma also stressed new jobs tax credits that are going to be as a center peice of his coming jobs speech-menitioning them twice. He also called for acceration of processing diablity backlogs by hiring more workers immdeiately.
I have to wonder how he plans to pay for all this military action once he eliminates federal income tax and lets states take care of the people. He is simply saying what the morons in the tea party and the top 1% want to hear to get their votes and money.
oh, its easy, he's going to use federal stimulus money to balance his budget with and create jobs with.
oh, wait, that doesn't work at the national level....ooopps...
Or you lure minimum wage jobs from other states to put people to work...oh wait that doesn't work on the national level either.
Perry on foreign policy is pimping the old Bush doctrine of unilateral preemptive war. We've been there. All we need to do is claim that some nation is a potential threat to the US and it's a license to invade.
We can begin with China, then clean up the Middle East, then Russia, then -- well, I was going to say Africa but they don't have anything we want except goobers.
Some thoughtful journalist ought to ask Rick Perry for a definition of "rogue nation."
I suspect that almost ANY question with substance is going to expose him...like it did palin and bachmann. Not that it might make any difference to voters who are going with the "anyone but obama" and "any moral christian" voting theory.
Tricky Ricky is like a Bush doll with voodoo pins stuck in him..
Yep, same crap......... if the bankers or oil companies are being bothered by someone it is time to invade. If the military contractors stock takes a little dip or their shareholder payouts were not up to snuff enough for management bonuses then we invade too.
Nobody can stop acts of random violence. They can be planned or perpetrated by anyone at anytime. Only fools or people profiting back such ideas. Our current policy "assuming there is one" is a license to enter any country at any time for any reason....... on the tab of the US taxpayers.
For all you liberals and progressives. Let me make this simple for you. Abolish the military.
well, that's simple. Silly, but simple.
Perry's talk about the U.S. in the world community kinda reminds me about his feelings about Texas in the U.S: " Do it our way or else!!" And some people actually like that .. lol
Oh yes, we need to isolate ourselves from the world now more than ever. Those dern foreners!!! Backwards we go in time ...