In 1990, after Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait, President George H. W. Bush was considering the American response. He was torn: On the one hand, he saw the necessity of pushing Saddam out of the oil-rich state, maintaining the impression of American strength in the region. On the other hand, he wanted to avoid conflict.
Three weeks after the invasion, Bush still had not made a decision. That’s when he famously accepted a phone call from British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.
“Remember, George,” she said, “this is no time to go wobbly.” Bush didn’t go wobbly. The United States expelled Saddam from Kuwait. That was the last outright military victory in American history.
Today, the United States faces down threats on all sides, the wages of appeasement of America’s most vicious enemies. From cutting awful deals with Iran to appeasing Russian aggression in Crimea, from bowing before Chinese expansionism to abandoning Afghanistan to the Taliban to sending overt American aid…