According to former secretary of state and twice-failed presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, Donald Trump is doing war all wrong.
In an interview aired Sunday on CNN “Fareed Zakaria GPS,” Clinton attacked Trump’s handling of the Iranian and North Korean situations. Specifically, Clinton said Trump’s attempts to pull out of the Iranian nuclear deal reached in 2015 basically mean “America’s word is not good.”
“Why on earth would we want two nuclear challenges in Iran and North Korea at the same time?” Clinton propositioned. “I think it’s very dangerous,” she added.
Clinton also said Trump’s position on the Iranian nuclear deal casts Iran as the victim in the situation:
“If Iran is complying, which all the evidence [suggests they are], then all of a sudden, instead of working to isolate Iran on every issue, we are giving Iran the spotlight — the aggrieved-party spotlight.”
“That makes us look foolish and small and plays right into Iranian hands,” she said.
The Wall Street Journal reported this week that Clinton took her criticism even further, speaking out against Trump’s saber-rattling rhetoric against North Korea. In a speech Wednesday, Clinton said Trump’s overhyped war of words with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was damaging America’s interests.
“Americans, as well as Koreans, have every right to be concerned about what path we are heading down,” she said.
“Picking fights with Kim Jong Un just puts a smile on his face,” Clinton added.
Clinton did not offer any particular solution to the current conflict, acknowledging there were no easy answers to the U.S.-North Korean stand-off. Nevertheless, she asserted that “cavalier threats to start a war are dangerous and shortsighted.”
Trump’s anti-Iranian position, particularly in relation to the 2015 nuclear deal, makes little sense politically (or even geopolitically).
Regardless, this is the same Hillary Clinton who vowed to “ring” China with defensive missiles if Beijing did not keep a lid on North Korea. It is the same Clinton who erupted into Riddler-style laughter when asked about America’s plans for going to war with Iran.
Hillary Clinton also single-handedly plunged Libya into chaos before saying “We came, we saw, he died” in a separate interview and again erupting into a fit of laughter over the death of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.
She also voted for the 2003 invasion of Iraq and was supportive of al-Qaeda-linked rebels in Syria. Her leaked emails showed she knew Saudi Arabia was financially sponsoring ISIS all while she accepted Saudi money on behalf of her foundation.
Trump is almost certainly doing war all wrong — not just in Hillary’s eyes — but that doesn’t mean her advice on these topics should necessarily be heeded given her vast list of criminal and violent behavior.
At this point, what difference does it make?