Democratic Congress should act to help Biden on Ukraine
More than 70% of the country feels we are going in the wrong direction. If Americans did not need another reason to change directions at least at the Congressional level, the massacre at Bucha and horrors seen in Ukraine cry out for change.
Where is the Democratcontrolled Congress?
From a recent House Armed Services Committee meeting I surmise the following: If we knew sanctions would not work in deterring Russia and we are not going to deploy troops in Ukraine — which Gen. Mark Milley said would have worked (an idea rejected by President Joe Biden out of his concern it could provoke World War III) — then we should not be surprised by what is going on today. Russia is occupying and destroying Ukraine.
A president’s judgment can be wrong. We all understand that. That is why we pray for him. But a president must have impeccable veracity. After erring, he should apologize to the American people. We are forgiving. But he shouldn’t think he can simply get away with it. We are not stupid.
During Biden’s brief time as president we have had a considerable amount of international military activity — at least four momentous incidents that the Democrat-controlled Congress has not fully explored. Assertions about these incidents, made by the administration, cast doubt on its willingness to tell Americans hard truths.
1. “Generals agreed with the U.S. exit plan out of Afghanistan.” This simply does not match statements made by the generals themselves. The result? The exit was a debacle.
2. “We will not leave any American behind in Afghanistan.” Instead, the administration left hundreds behind.
3. Tough sanctions will deter Russia from invading Ukraine. We all know they would take a while to kick-in and bite. So that’s poor judgment.
4. Then, Biden claimed he never said sanctions would deter Russia. Yet the entire leadership at White House said they “would.”
Congress should request clarity from each one of the administration’s officials who made these claims. Who authorized these untruths? Either the officials were lying or the person at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave was making statements contrary to the facts.
In an op-ed published a few weeks ago, I claimed that only a strong military presence would deter Russia from invading Ukraine. Gen. Milley said the same this week before a Congressional hearing.
I applaud Pentagon officials who are now calling for a buildup of U.S. forces in countries bordering Ukraine. This is a REAL deterrence and I trust they are doing the same in other hot spots around the world. The idea is simple: peace through strength.
If the Democrat-controlled House and Senate are okay with Biden’s statements not aligning with the facts, then those members of that body should all be replaced. They all represent the American people, and we are not okay with any of the four statements that Biden made.
What Biden has done with his misstatements has resulted in thousands of lives lost, billions of dollars spent, military hardware lost (to the Taliban), increased energy costs, rampant inflation, and potentially trillions of dollars that would be needed to rebuild Ukraine someday.
We all know that former presidents Reagan and H.W. Bush would not stand for this. And we know what Eisenhower would have done. All conservative Republicans ran strong administrations when it came to military intervention abroad. They won the Cold War. They made our friends love us and our enemies fear us.
How can we witness war crimes and still refuse to give the Ukrainians what they have requested in this fight?
The atrocities we are witnessing in Ukraine may partially be due to failed policies, including European nations still purchasing oil and gas from Russia.
But the Democrat-controlled Congress can do a lot more. They should help, challenge and advise the Biden administration whenever they can find the time in between holding contempt of Congress hearings, as they explore the 2020 election aftermath.
Gary Franks served three terms as U.S. representative for Connecticut’s 5th District. He was the first Black Republican elected to the House in nearly 60 years and New England’s first Black member of the House. He is the host of the podcast “We Speak Frankly.” Follow him on Twitter @GaryFranks.