Well, it’s about time. America finally has a Commander-in-Chief who learned from history that a nation’s most valuable asset is its people.
In taking out Iranian-terrorist-masquerading-as-a-General Qassem Soleimani, President Trump has shown that he will protect every one of his countrymen, whatever the cost may be. And he did so by emulating Rome’s policy of Civis Romanis — “I am a citizen of Rome.”
The policy of the greatest superpower the world had ever known was crystal clear: if harm should come to any Roman citizen, the retribution of Rome would be on an unprecedented scale. Rome placed such a high value on its citizens that any transgression against them would be taken as an act of war. Most bandits understood this, and, consequently, Romans traveled the breadth of Empire confident that they would never be harmed.
That policy should be just as applicable today. Yet too many former presidents have responded to Americans being harmed by unleashing only rhetoric. But as a petulant child quickly learns, idle threats open the door to more unchecked transgressions. Conversely, the way to change behavior is through decisive action, conveying the unmistakable message that future infractions will be met with increasingly severe responses.
Let’s set the record straight.
Fact: Soleimani was responsible for killing hundreds of Americans. Fact: As leader of Iran’s Quds Force, the General was responsible for arming terrorist organizations worldwide, including Hezbollah, the Houthis, and those in Gaza. Fact: Soleimani was involved in the attacks on the Saudi oil refinery and the U.S. Embassy. Fact: He wasn’t retiring to a tropical paradise, but instead had been accelerating plans to attack American servicemen and the diplomatic corps.
Soleimani’s career had been attacking Western targets and sowing bloody turmoil. It’s what he did, and it’s all he did. People like that don’t suddenly change their lifestyle and opt for ballgames and picnics. They keep killing. The critics can still dislike Trump, but on this, they need to wake up. He was right.
The attack on our embassy didn’t occur on Iraqi ground, but American soil, since the U.S. embassy is America’s sovereign territory. Iran’s attack, whether directly or by proxy, is an act of war. It would have been the same had the attack been carried out in New York or Washington. So how can any rational person make America the bad guy? They attacked us. We responded by eliminating the mastermind. And so it will go until Iran learns that it cannot win the Civis Americanis war.
Yet some critics are calling the killing an “assassination,” actually putting the American personnel who executed the strike, and the president himself, in the same category as John Wilkes Booth, Lee Harvey Oswald, and Sirhan Sirhan. As a nefarious military operator with American blood on his hands, Soleimani was a legitimate target.
Unsurprisingly, the Left’s hypocrisy is on display. It remains silent about President Obama’s killing of American citizens (who were working with terrorists) via drone strike (actions done with neither judicial review nor congressional approval), but is now up-in-arms about a non-citizen terrorist being killed in a foreign land. How’s that for consistency?
Like clockwork, Democrats made the strike partisan by claiming the attack wasn’t necessary, and ordered to distract attention from impeachment. Congressional leaders are also upset because they weren’t briefed in advance. Their obtuseness is astounding.
How is it a distraction when President Trump is demanding Ms. Pelosi send the impeachment articles to the Senate? He wants the impeachment trial to go forward, so strike one. Second, President Bill Clinton ordered a strike during the Lewinsky proceedings. That wasn’t to deflect attention, but an attempt to eliminate Osama bin Laden. Just because something may be politically advantageous doesn’t mean it isn’t justified; strike two. Lastly, briefing Congress could have generated leaks that tipped off Soleimani. It’s a sad day when elected officials side with the bad guys solely because they can’t stomach Donald Trump looking presidential. Strike three.
Those congressional members are forgetting Civics 101. As Commander-in-Chief, the president doesn’t answer to congress on such actions, nor does he need its permission. They should be briefed afterwards, but for informational purposes only. And Speaker Pelosi’s move to limit the President’s War Powers? Shameless and dangerous.
And it wouldn’t be America if we didn’t hear from ignorant celebrities.
Rose McGown apologized to Iran, John Cusack tried to use “fascist” intelligently (he failed), and Colin Kaepernick incoherently rambled that America commits “terrorist attacks against Black and Brown people for the expansion of American imperialism.” These folks would do well to understand that fame does not equate to knowledge.
We should be grateful that Mr. Trump followed the adage that it’s better to regret something you’ve done, rather than something you didn’t do.
Thank you, Mr. President. Audaces fortuna iuvat!
Chris Freind is an independent columnist, television commentator, and investigative reporter who operates his own news bureau, Freindly Fire Zone Media. Read more reports from Chris Freind — Click Here Now.