Op-ed:
Even
Great Presidents Make Mistakes...Part Two
By
Diane Sori / The Patriot Factor
The article posted here is the authors opinion alone, and does not
necessarily represent the views of blogspot.com
or Google
In
'Part One'
of this series I began by stating that I voted for Donald J. Trump
three times, and would vote for him a fourth time if it was
constitutionally allowed. And know I still stand by those words even
though I disagreed with his putting the “tariffs”
before the economy itself. Here you can read why in 'Part One.'In
this 'Part Two'
I
will delve into why I believe President Trump made a second mistake
regarding the logistics of the Israel/Hamas ceasefire being a pathway
to peace, as well as briefly touching upon a possible third mistake
being made...one that might or might not happen...in regards to the
2028 Republican presidential ticket.
So
let me begin by saying that while our president's intentions were
both honorable and just, his mistake regarding the ceasefire was made
by his breaking one of America's cardinal rules, as in America does
not...I repeat does not...negotiate with terrorists. And while this
has technically been a long-standing
but unwritten core principle of U.S. foreign policy, the reality is
that said rule has sadly been broken before, often with disastrous
and/or questionable results.
One
such example took place in 2014, when then President Obama made the
highly questionable “5-for-1”
prisoner exchange with the Taliban. Briefly, Obama's deal, made
courtesy of a third party nation, saw five
top level Taliban commanders being
exchanged for American traitor Bowe Bergdahl... who upon being
returned home faced charges of “desertion
and misbehavior before the enemy.”And
while prosecutors
at his court-martial did seek a sentence of 14 years in prison,
Bergadahl was given no time after having submitted so-called
“evidence
of torture”
while being held by the Taliban. However, Bergdahl was dishonorably
discharged (rightfully making him ineligible
for health services and disability benefits), and
ordered to forfeit $10,000
in pay.
All but a slap on the wrist, in my opinion, because he knowingly and
willingly put his fellow American soldiers lives in danger when he
deserted and went looking for the enemy, but Obama obviously saw the
situation differently, and we all can surmise why.
Now
as for the five Taliban commanders, their punishment was indeed but a
mere slap on the wrist for after being subjected to a one-year travel
ban and monitoring in the nation Obama turned them over to, these
five terrorists were back out on the field orchestrating and
succeeding in the killing of more American military personnel.
Now
here is where it gets interesting for the nation that helped in
Obama's brokering of the infamous “5-for-1”
prisoner exchange is
the very same nation that helped to broker President Trump's what is now turning out to be anything but a “ceasefire
deal.” And that
nation is Qatar...the very nation Obama transferred the custody
of the Taliban commanders to back in 2014, and we all know how well
that turned out to be, now don't we... sarcastically said of course.And
know this is the same Qatar who willingly gave “safe
harbor,” and still
does, to top Hamas officials before, during, and now after the Trump
initiated Israel/Hamas ceasefire went into effect...a ceasefire
whose conditions Hamas has broken time and time again. And Qatar also
played a central role as the primary mediator
in the negotiations for the said “ceasefire.”
Now rightfully facing criticism and pressure from Israel and as well
as from some here in the U.S. regarding its continuing ties to Hamas,
one must remember that Qatar also supported Hamas' governance in
Gaza, and remains dedicated to Hamas' goal of there being a
“two-state solution”
to said war.
And why is this disturbing...
because Qatar still maintains open communication with not only
terrorist groups like the Taliban and Hamas, but has diplomatic and
economic relations with Iran as well. No wonder Israel is not happy
with Qatar having been any part of the ceasefire deal, especially
since Qatar had established
unofficial trade relations with Israel in 1996, but “permanently” severed those relations in 2009, and to date has still not
normalized nor even attempted to normalize relations with Israel.
And
that's not all, for while Qatar
and Putin's Russia are not “formally
recognized” as
allies, they do nurture a growing strategic partnership along with
shared political and economic ties...ties based upon a diverse range
of issues including, but not limited to, energy, trade, and the
allowing of both countries to have a hand in profiting from Middle
East regional conflicts.
Qatar...no
matter it technically being a U.S. ally...no matter us having the
“AL-Udeid Air Base”
(the
largest U.S. military base in the Middle East) in Qatar for over two
decades...Qatar still cannot and should not be trusted as a main
player in the still ongoing Israel/Hamas peace process let alone in
the Middle East region itself. And why...because with Qatar
having adopted what's called an
“activist foreign policy,'' it
allows them to actually play both sides against the middle as they
continue to help fund certain terrorist aligned nations, even if its
under the radar so to speak, while at the same time playing the part
of being a peace negotiator. And not to be forgotten is that the UAE
and all important Saudi Arabia both share a deep disdain for Qatar.
Why so... because Qatar is the main financier of the Muslim
Brotherhood, which they rightfully deem to be a direct threat to both
their monarchies and to Middle East peace.
President
Trump has to see this, Secretary of State Marco Rubio has to see this
as well (and if anyone does it's him), but for some reason Donald
Trump either does not see it or, like Qatar he is also playing, to
some degree, both sides against the middle, but with the hope that it
brings some semblance of peace to the Middle East.
I
truly do believe that President Trump is dedicated to making peace
happen, but the fact remains that dedication alone is not necessarily
a harbinger of peace. And I hope that he is not totally counting on
Qatar's promised trillion dollar investment in the U.S., especially
since Qatar still has not ended its ties and support for a number of
terrorist groups nor has it...and this bears repeating again...made
any concerted effort to normalize relations with Israel...the very
country they are playing...or supposedly playing...mediator for.
Simply, I have a very uneasy feeling about this what well could be a
mistake on President Trump's part, but only time will tell whether it
is or not.
A
possible mistake indeed. A mistake that if it is made, could well have serious ramifications in regards to the 2028 Republican presidential
ticket.
How
so...because if the Trump brokered Israel/Hamas ceasefire deal in the
end falls apart with Saudi Arabia possibly becoming the deciding
factor in which way the Middle East will go... as in will threats of war with the Jewish State always be on the horizon or will we see a Saudi brokered shift
towards peace? However, Saudi Arabia, to date, has yet to sign the
“Abraham Accords,” and you
just know how the leftist media controlled “court of public
opinion” will jump all over that point as they place the blame
for the ceasefire deal's failure on President Trump and Israel, and not
on Hamas and its supporters where it would rightfully belong.And
this would affect the 2028 presidential race how...because as Trump's
vice president, JD Vance...the Republican's current heir
apparent...would then be deemed as carrying on what would be seen as
Trump's failed foreign policy initiatives. Forgetting our president's
other successful peace deals, the focus would remain on the Middle
East and on Russia who have yet to see a deal being brokered to end
its war with Ukraine...a war Trump and his team thought they would
bring to a successful conclusion that both sides would accept in a
relatively short period of time. But to date, as I write this, that
unfortunately has not happened either, even with all Trump's good
intentions and open ended gestures.
And
then there's this important historical fact that many Republicans and Democrats
have overlooked...the fact that only once in our nation's 250 year history has
a vice president been able to see what would be their own two-term
presidency. And that honor goes only to Thomas Jefferson who served
twice as vice president and then went on to be elected to, and
complete two terms as president.
And
why is this so...because by the time the once vice president has
served his own first term in office as president, the country itself
would likely be ready for some vestiges of political change. And this
could well be the case if the then new one term president was deemed
to be but a continuation of his former boss's presidency, especially
if the public deemed the former president's failures to have
outnumbered his successes, and that the new president was carrying
over the same failed policies into his presidency.
Now
here please understand that while I believe JD Vance...Trump's
seemingly designated heir apparent...has done well as vice president,
he is not as well versed in foreign affairs as is Secretary of State
Marco Rubio, and foreign affairs in today's volatile world is indeed
as important as domestic issues. In fact, in some cases, foreign
affairs directly affect our domestic issues more so than it affects the world
at large.
“If
they ever formed a group, it would be unstoppable. I really do. I
believe that.”
-
So
said President Trump just a few weeks ago when the idea of a
Vance/Rubio 2028 ticket was being floated around.And while I like those two
names linked together, I do think Trump could be making a mistake in
not making the ticket “Rubio/Vance.”
Why so...because “Rubio/Vance”
is a politically stronger ticket due to Rubio's 15 years in the U.S.
Senate; his current position as Secretary of State; as well as his
being a leading figure on foreign policy including the fact that he
was a senior member of the Foreign Relations Committee; and served as
Vice-Chair of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence.
J.D.
Vance, had only served two years in the Senate before becoming vice
president, but he does have one important credential I think all president's
should have, as in hands-on military service...whether they be a veteran or former member of the National Guard. JD Vance is a U.S.
Marine Corps veteran, and I truly honor him for that.
However, JD
lacks something important that Rubio has, as in the ability to bring Independents
and even moderate Democrats over to his side. Remember, Rubio was the
only Trump nominee who sailed through the process with both Democrat
and Republican support which bodes well with Independent voters. And
it's these very voters who do not view Vance well, but see him as an
opportunist after his having switched from being a Trump hater to a
Trump loyalist.But
if the 2028 ticket is Vance/Rubio that is the ticket that gets my
vote. However, my dream ticket would be DeSantis/Rubio...the best
governor in the country paired with the best Secretary of State ever.
Talk about a politically strong ticket...Trump would make no mistake
with a ticket like that. Case closed.
Copyright ©
2025 Diane Sori / The Patriot Factor / All rights reserved.
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For more political commentary please visit my RIGHT SIDE PATRIOTS partner Craig Andresen's blog The National Patriot to read his latest article Release the Conspiracy Kraken.
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RIGHT SIDE PATRIOTS...LIVE! Tomorrow, Tuesday, December 2nd from 7 to 8:30pm EST, RIGHT SIDE PATRIOTS
Craig Andresen and Diane Sori discuss 'Even
Great Presidents Make Mistakes...Part Two'; 'Release the Conspiracy Kraken'; and important news of the day. Hope you can tune in to RIGHT SIDE PATRIOTS on https://rspradio1.com Click 'LISTEN LIVE' starting at 6:50pm EST, show begins at 7pm EST.
