The latest political dispute coming from our leaders in Washington D.C. is yet another "evil-doer" plot in the Middle East. Everyone agrees the terrorist group: Islamic State of Iraq & greater Syria (termed "ISIS - ISIL" for short) is a brutal military force which has a nasty habit of killing off people who fail to join their version of the Islamic faith. As per usual, there is no consensus among our leaders concerning a realistic policy.
President Barack Obama has provided air support to assist Iraqi troops from being completely over-run. This action was provided after the initial battle when the American trained Iraqi forces fled in the face of the enemy leaving behind $-billions in military equipment for the enemy to use at the U.S. taxpayer's expense.
The US, in efforts to overcome this new and terrifying terrorist threat, is seeking partners in some sort of military engagement. It appears, however, that everyone is willing to provide air support and equipment, but no one is willing to put "boots on the ground."
Speaker of the House, John Boehner, points out air support is not enough; that no conflict can succeed without ground troops. He is joined by other members of Congress who argue for more American military presence in the area and possibly the US could provide military advisors to equip and train these mythical troops that no one wants to provide. The down side of this proposal is that the U.S. has already placed military advisors plus a training regimen in Iraq at a terrible cost in money, equipment and human life with disappointing results.
"The enemy of my enemy is my friend . . ."
Ironically, Syria (who we don't support) is actively engaged in a military fight against ISIS and many other fragmented groups in their country and would welcome our entry into this war. And then there is Iran who might provide assistance and maybe even ground troops if we would abandon our anti-nuclear stance and allow them to become a nuclear power.
This latest squabble among our nation's leaders has all the elements of a three ring circus. It was not all that long ago that Congress shut down the government because they could not agree on conditions related to raising the debt limit. Now, with a national debt at nearly $18 trillion and annual interest payments exceeding $400 billion, it appears many Washington Legislators are willing to throw $billions more at another conflict in the Middle East with little hope of a satisfactory ending.
Where, one may ask, are those fiscal conservatives who previously were so concerned about the national debt limit?