Anyone who has read anything I have written till now is aware that I am completely opposed to any negotiations with Iran’s current regime. I have, and will continue to oppose any deal with a government that sounds frighteningly similar to Hitler’s Nazi Germany. That being said, the recent actions taken by Republican lawmakers in which they sent a letter to Iran’s government was not only wrong, it was dangerous.
In my post titled Unity or Destruction. Pick One, I discuss the importance of a unified front against evil. It’s not really a challenge when everyone has the same political opinion and strategy or approach. So for those who will say they support the letter because these Republicans are right about Iran and the administration is wrong, I offer you the following response. It’s irrelevant.
Here’s some clichés and quotes for you: United We Stand Divided We Fall, Divide and Conquer, and of course Abraham Lincoln’s: “A House Divided Against Itself Cannot Stand”, all apply here. Take your pick. Just as I did not feel that Benjamin Netanyahu’s speech should have been turned into a partisan issue, and I called out the Democrats who made it one, so too I believe that the break from structure here is a damaging partisan move that hurts the country more than it helps the country.
Make no mistake. This is more than just a break in protocol. The entire structure of our democracy is impacted by this global show of a lack in unity within our governmental system. Not to mention the damage to the office of the President. Sometimes it has nothing to do with the individual and everything to do with the office. In other words, even if all the criticisms of the president are correct on this issue, insulting the office is never justified by elected American representatives. That even applies to situations in which they wish to make the case that the policy of the president shows disrespect for his own office. In other words, 2 wrongs, or in this case 47 wrongs don’t make a right.
When I try to predict some of the responses I might get to this article I realize that in many ways this is as non-partisan as anything I’ve ever written. Both sides will make their claim. Some will say the 47 were right for sending the letter. After all, they don’t support dealing with Iran and feel the president is going against their wishes in conducting these negotiations. On top of which the danger in dealing with Iran is so great that the ends justify the means. Personally I believe they are laughing today in Tehran and believing they have us just where they want us. Fighting among ourselves to such a point that we’ve gone out of the family, so to speak.
For those who will say John Boehner did the same thing when he invited Benjamin Netanyahu I say this. There is a big difference between 47 lawmakers sending a letter to a hostile country contradicting the president than there is in the Speaker of the House inviting the Head of Government of an important ally.
Too many people seem to be taking their eye off the ball and taking actions that are more political than beneficial. Actions that hurt the structure of the American government impact everyone, and other than our enemies, not beneficially. We need more elected representatives who stand up for what is right for the nation rather than what they perceive as right for their career or party. The stakes are too high, and if politicians continue to play these silly games the results will ultimately be catastrophic.
If ever we needed true leadership, something I believe we are sadly missing, it is right now.
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