June 26, 1998
ON MY MIND
/
By A.M. ROSENTHAL
Clinton Gets Results
fter six years, President Clinton's foreign policy has brought dramatic results. It has strengthened
the world's three major dictatorships, won the contempt of America's friends and enemies for its word
and determination, and helped
spread missile weaponry.
That alone would be a historic
record for a President to achieve with
two years still to go. But Mr. Clinton
has also labored to create attitudes in
Americans themselves that demean
America's vision of itself and of duties that freedom imposes on it.
Never before have the thoughts,
statements and actions of an American President been so favorably influenced by any dictatorship as Mr.
Clinton's by China, and its business,
intellectual and journalistic support
groups in the U.S.
Many of America's allies have also
been doing their best to help China
and the two other dictatorships --
Iraq and Iran. Like Mr. Clinton in
China, they chase trade profits over
democratic principle.
But America's allies never
claimed leadership of the free world
or keen interest in democracy outside their borders. For them it is
business as usual -- like the buildup
of Saddam Hussein before the gulf
war. But for an American President
to walk away from those who believed in America to those who torture them is, of course, betrayal of
U.S. history and promises.
Mr. Clinton's grand voyage to China is a symbol of his achievements.
Already he has given Beijing much
of what it craves -- missile technology and huge commercial trade, all
benefiting the Chinese Communist
Party and armed forces, a gentle eye
toward Chinese missile and nuclear
sales, and a complete reversal of his
pre-election promises to link trade
with human rights.
So, on to Tiananmen we go. Could
the killers in the Politburo have
dreamt that a U.S. President would
give them so much honor, respectability and absolution -- all for vast trade
profits, which turned out to be vast
trade deficits for America?
About Iraq: Mr. Clinton, like
George Bush before him, let Iraq get
away with what Saddam Hussein then
wanted most. That was clear fields to
slaughter the Iraqi opposition.
Then, when Saddam smashed the
U.N. inspection system for as many
months as he wished, Mr. Clinton
agreed with the U.N. on the appropriate punishment: none.
Now, after seven years of Iraqi
refusal to reveal the truth about its
preparations for making weapons of
mass destruction, a plan was worked
out at the U.N. that could have lifted
sanctions, possibly beginning in October. Let's not be dullwits: everybody
at the U.N. knows Saddam will again
set to making forbidden weapons and
already is revered by Arabs as the
victor over America, which he is.
But evidence of Iraqi nerve gas
production was discovered, so the
sanctions-lifting may be delayed.
Washington has the veto power --
but no longer the political clout to
prevent U.N. members from selling
Saddam what he wants, veto or no.
The U.S. also refuses to pay its U.N.
dues. Blame this on Congress, not the
Administration or the U.N. delegation
led by the much-respected Bill Richardson. But nobody likes losers and
deadbeats, particularly two in one.
Now it is Iran's turn for a Clintonian helping hand.
He waived sanctions
against Russia and France for pouring billions into Iranian gas fields.
Then he offered to start making nice
with Iran itself, not just its suppliers.
Iran is still run by the same folk
who made it the world's center of
terrorism and anti-American hate
propaganda. But never mind -- Mobil oil is ecstatic about the curtsey to
Teheran.
Mr. Clinton will give the same rationalization for a deal with Iran as
for selling missile technology to China: "Engagement" with China is
better than isolating it. He knows the
comparison is lividly false, of course.
Americans who oppose his empowerment of China do not want to isolate it. They want engagement -- not
as appeasers but free people trying
to use American political and economic pressure to ease political
shackles in China and Tibet, end
forced abortions and religious persecution and release the five to seven
million slave-labor prisoners.
Usually without nuisance of trial,
they work in factories built into the
prisons, dual use with bars and
prods, part of national budgeting.
Mr. Clinton, the whole family, might
have fun dropping in.