Where Have All the Cowboys Gone?

Iran getting nukes? So what?

Mark Levin:

I think it is now clear that Iran will acquire nuclear weapons and no one will stop it.

The U.S. response to Hezbollah, an arm of the Iranian military, demonstrates a lack of will to confront militarily Iran. The U.S. has now bought into the elusion — urged by the U.N., Europe, and domestic liberals — that diplomacy will somehow contain the Iranian regime. This is a fundamental and fatal shift by the administration. For all the talk in support of the Bush Doctrine and preemption, the administration has effectively rejected them. And the Democracy Project is not possible if the will to first destroy the enemy is not backed up by military action intended to defeat the enemy.

In the last several weeks, we've seen a stunning reversal of both rhetoric and actions by the administration. The Israeli-Hezbollah-Iranian-Syrian battle provided the U.S. with a perfect opportunity to land a devastating blow against the Axis of Evil. It became painfully evident soon after the battle began that Olmert was not up to the task. The U.S. should have urged on Israel's government, not merely buy it time. Instead, after a few weeks we dramatically reversed course and led a frenzied (indeed, bizarre) diplomatic effort with the French and the UN to cobble together a phony ceasefire deal that handed the enemy a military and propaganda victory. The U.S.-negotiated ceasefire plan places the entire burden for compliance on Israel. Moreover, the terrorists bear no burden and their state sponsors go unscathed.

And let me be blunt: If the U.S. was serious about winning the war on terrorism, which means destroying the Iranian regime, the time to take military action against Iran was when Israel was moving against Hezbollah. Yes, I know this is controversial, but it ought not be — unless, of course, the U.S. has no intention of stopping Iran, no intention of using military force against Iran, and is committed to a defeatist diplomatic agenda. The time to strike Iran was while it was engaged on another front (southern Lebanon) and before its acquisition of nuclear weapons.

The only reason I can think of for Bush's stunning volte-face on international terrorism and unwillingness to confront Iran and her henchmen WHEN THE U.S. MILITARY IS PARKED NEXT DOOR is that Iran already has nuclear weapons to deploy.

Look at a map. How on Earth do you explain our inability to exploit our central position in the Middle East to wipe out the Syrians and Iranians? Keep in mind that neither are first-rate opponents; Iran fought Iraq (same folks we mopped the floor with twice) to a draw and the Syrians got skunked by the Israelis. The only thing these people do well is terrorism. Without a state sponsor, they won't be able to do even that well (keep in mind that the Iraqi insurgency is being run from Tehran, not Fallujah or Baghdad).

What on Earth is Bush thinking right now?