"North Korea broke the rules once more," Obama thundered. "Rules must be binding. Violations must be punished. Words must mean something."
But Obama is prepared to act! Just two days after North Korea launched its missile, the Obama Administration announced a 17% cut in the missile defense budget and a $5B cut in military modernization programs. [No doubt "Glorious Leader" Kim Jong-II will portray the cuts as a consequence and vindication of the missile launch.]
That's right: the same person who signed billions in earmarks, which he vowed during the general campaign he wouldn't do, and is proposing the biggest government expansion, budget and deficit in U.S. history, knows his spending priorities, where to draw the line and find cuts: the national defense of the United States.
Obama, at the same time, finds it impossible to give a public speech in a foreign country without first pointing out America's blemishes: slavery, mistreatment of native Americans, and racial discrimination, etc. So in discussing the need to reduce the presence of nuclear weapons, Obama felt compelled to add: "As a nuclear power, as the only nuclear power to have used a nuclear weapon, the United States has a moral responsibility to act."
Obama, in calling the North Korean action a "provocation", insisted on a unified international response--knowing that the Russians and Chinese, with veto power on the U.N. Security Council, are resisting sanctions and are paying lip service to the sham North Korean rationalization of launching a communications satellite.
And, as John Bolton's Wall Street Journal article today ("Obama's NK Reaction: More Talks") points out, U.S. Special Envoy for North Korea Stephen Bosworth promised, even before the expected missile launch, that the multi-lateral talks with North Korea would resume as soon as the missile launch gets off the front pages.
The fact is that Obama never provided any tough response that the North Koreans could respect and is already gaining an international reputation of being a paper tiger. I am not necessarily suggesting I would have advocated these steps, but the U.S. could have sent some strong signals it was prepared to act if and when North Korea launched against international wishes: e.g., an immediate suspension of food and energy supplies, announcements of additional manpower and/or improved military hardware for South Korea, Japan and other area countries, an indefinite suspension of multi-lateral talks, and possible preemptive military action against the missile site.
"Words? Just words?" Indeed. Just words...
