Thompson - not ready for prime time

Steve Benen blogging for Josh,has some observations on Sen Thompson's foreign policy.

Like many other Republicans he seems to be falling for the 'hey we can push round other countries goddammit' school of foreign policy that is determined to learn no lessons from Iraq (or from the several centuries of experience of guerrilla warfare since Wellington's Peninsular campaign).

The latest brain-wave is a blockade of Iran, assuming that Russia, China etc. don't mind having their oil supply from Iran interrupted and will be willing to play ball. Also assuming that Iran does not retaliate for an act of war against US troops or by imposing its own blockade of all shipping in the Straits of Hormuz.

Left to their own devices the mullatocracy might well lose their grip on power. Given the gift of bellicose rhetoric from US Republicans they might well be able to survive by directing internal dissent against the external aggressor. It has worked for Castro in Cuba for forty years.

Of course these people understand what they are doing and the effect it will have. One explanation is that they just don't care. Another strong possibility is that they understand the outcome and positively desire it. They realize that a party like the US Republican party can only gain power by exploiting an external threat, whether real or imaginary.