January 14, 2004

Fill in the Blanks

Who said the following in a letter to the President of the United States?

After long and careful thought, and after several years of watching the gross atrocities committed by the ____, I have reluctantly concluded that the efforts of the United Nations and NATO in _____ are a complete failure.

I think your policy up to this date has been absolutely correct. We must give, and have given, this policy with our allies and with the United Nations every opportunity to work. It is evident, however, that the cost in human lives in allowing this policy to continue is too great. In addition, and perhaps more importantly for the United States, we are now in a position of ignoring, as many did in the 1940s, one of the worst crimes committed in history. If we ignore these behaviors, no matter where they occur, our moral fiber as a people becomes weakened. . . .

Since it is clearly no longer possible to take action in conjunction with NATO and the United Nations, I have reluctantly concluded that we must take unilateral action.

The answer is Howard Dean, to Clinton in 1995, urging him to involve the American military in Bosnia. Can anyone explain why Clark would think unilateral intervention was desirable there but not in Saddam Hussein's Iraq where the level of atrocities was always much higher and the danger to peace in strategic areas much more imminent?

Posted by Dexter at January 14, 2004 04:28 PM