The Lost Art
of Diplomacy
Have You Googled It?
Have You Googled It?
By Hank
Silverberg
The man in
the White House has said from the start that he is a deal maker. He approaches
every issue, from job creation to nuclear proliferation, with the idea that he
alone can strike a deal with someone and solve the problem.
I could go
into a long list of “deals” businessman Donald J. Trump made over the years that
turned into financial disasters for either him or his partners, but the world
should be more concerned about his so-called deals as President.
None is more
critical than his confrontation with Iran or his approach to Kim Jong-Un in
North Korea. Both are hostile regimes on the verge of creating, or already in
possession of, nuclear weapons.
With Iran, President Obama and European leaders had negotiated a treaty in which the Iranians promised to stop developing nuclear weapons in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions which had been crippling Iran’s economy.
Trump called
the deal "weak." He walked away from it, and he walked away from our allies who
helped create it. Even the leaders of Israel, the country most threatened by
Iran, was not totally skeptical of the Obama administration's attempt to negotiate.
Now, two
years into the Trump administration, the Iranians have moved ahead with their
nuclear weapons program and are forcefully promoting their regional control of
the Persian Gulf through which much of the world’s oil supply is
transported. The man who allegedly wrote
“The Art of the Deal” seems impotent
and has no clue what to do. He listens
only to the war hawks whom he seems to follow, despite his own naivete about the
cost of such action.
It is clear
though, that even the Mullahs in Iran would rather confront us with conventional
forces than go nuclear. They are sane enough to realize the danger.
The same
cannot be said of Mr. Trump’s new buddy in North Korea. Kim Jong-un is the
third in line in a murderous family of dictators. He has eliminated all
opponents by executing them, including members of his own family, just like his
father and grandfather before him. When the second round of talks with Trump in Vietnam
did not go well, Kim had the negotiators executed.
Trump seems
to think a few one-on-one meetings will get
North Korea’s “Supreme Leader” to
simply give up his nuclear ambitions, the only real leverage he has to keep the
Hermit Kingdom on the world stage. So, what has happened since Mr. Trump’s
first meeting with Kim? North Korea dismantled some outdated, no longer used
missile launching sites as a good public relations campaign in front of western
TV cameras. But just last week, North Korea test fired two short range ballistic missiles into the sea. And
Defense Intelligence Agency analysts say North Korea has produced 12 nuclear
weapons since the first Trump-Kim Summit.
It is clear
Mr. Trump’s one-on-one diplomacy has convinced Kim he has nothing to lose and a
lot to gain by moving ahead with nuclear weapons. And here the issue is more worrisome. Unlike the leaders of Iran, it is conceivable that Kim, who has
starved and murdered thousands of his
own people for almost a decade, could actually use them if he feels threatened.
The stakes are high. But our country seems distracted by tweets from the
bully-in-chief and an election campaign by two dozen Democrats who have yet to
focus on anything of substance.
All this comes as one of the last adults in the Administration decides to leave. Dan Coats, the former Senator, who has been the Director of National Intelligence, is stepping down. He tried to keep Trump informed on vital issues like Russian interference in our elections, but we rarely heard from him in public.
All this comes as one of the last adults in the Administration decides to leave. Dan Coats, the former Senator, who has been the Director of National Intelligence, is stepping down. He tried to keep Trump informed on vital issues like Russian interference in our elections, but we rarely heard from him in public.
This past
week we had another example of what’s wrong with our politics.
Congress
brought Special Counsel Robert Mueller in for an all-day hearing on the 400 page report he produced. The only definitive statement I heard in
that hearing was Mueller’s assertion that the Russians did indeed interfere in
the 2016 presidential election, and he said they are doing it again right now.
That should
have set off an alarm for every American, especially politicians who rely on
votes to keep them in office. The same
day, yes, that same day, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell killed two bills that were aimed at tightening election
security.
He had also
blocked any mention of such meddling in 2015 after the Obama administration
warned that it was going on.
I have
referred to the GOP as the party of “no” for close to ten years. They just seem
to vote against ANY proposal suggested by the Democrats, sometimes without even
looking at the details. It is hard to comprehend a motive other than to keep
their core supporters happy–though that core is now a shrinking minority of
voters. It certainly is NOT good
government.
One of the
biggest successes touted by the GOP this past year was the Trump tax cut ,which
they said would stimulate corporate investment and create jobs.
Now there is
some firm evidence it has done nothing but raised the national debt, setting us
up for a possible recession.
Republicans
have always talked about controlling spending, but have rarely done so. The
National Debt went up during the Reagan, Bush 1, Bush 2 and Trump presidencies as it did with most other presidents. The only recent budget SURPLUS to bring it down was during the Clinton years.
If this blog
sounds more partisan than my usual tone, you are right. I believe the American
public is losing their patience with Trump, the GOP and the
dysfunctional Congress. If the Democrats
can’t find a way to sooth the outrage and get us back on track towards a
positive role in the global community and progressive prosperity at home, it could get really rough for the next decade or more. Bolstering the Social Security Trust Fund which Congress has raided for years, should be the starting point. Baby Boomers really didn’t want to deal with this in their
retirement. Watch out if we really get angry.
News Notes: On the lighter side
Have you
ever Googled yourself? It’s a good idea to do so every now and then. You will
be surprised what you will find. A quick
check of the listings on me show some positive things, like a large
number of old news stories I had done
for both radio and TV, many of which I had forgotten. They also highlight
my blogs and listings on all three books I have written, including this one on
the latest book.
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The Campaign: Hank Silverberg: 9781543422603: Amazon.com: Books
The
Campaign [Hank Silverberg] on
Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. The vice president of the
United States is conflicted. She has risen to ..
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But they
have also made many mistakes. Google took me to "Who’s Who in American
Journalism" where apparently, I have received a “Life Time Achievement Award” that
I didn’t know anything about, despite their never-ending effort to sell me one of their books. (I suspect that's why they listed me that way.)
The listing still
had me working for a company I left in 1998, even though they have called over
the years to update my information and make yet another pitch to buy their very
expensive book.
All of my family is
listed as living at those old addresses too, though my children are on their own now and have been for a few years. But someone named Julie Border is also living in my
household according to that site. She has followed me to three addresses even
though she is not a family member, and I have no idea who she is. Why hasn’t she
helped pay the mortgage?
The Internet
is a wonderful place. How else would I find out there’s a business called “Hank
Silverberg, Plumbing and Repair” in Sherman Oaks, California? Maybe I can meet the other Hank Silverberg someday. If it was closer I would certainly call him to fix my leaky sink faucet.
But the Internet is also full of a lot of false information. If
you find information that isn’t right about you or nefarious, there are companies that claim they
can fix it. But CBS reported this week that some of those companies are scams.
So, good luck if you are doing a background check on me. A lot of the information is just plain wrong.
I am hoping for
a good week ahead. Though I assume President Trump will keep the Battle of
Baltimore going. Maybe I will write about that next week, but I suspect something more
important will come up.
(Your
suggestions and comments are welcome)
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