Mileage Psycho Posted February 28, 2017 Share Posted February 28, 2017 These men understand that it is not easy and that it's not cheap to be the leader of the free world. We need freinds and our freinds need us. Quote Retired generals cite past comments from Mattis while opposing Trump’s proposed foreign aid cuts The Washington Post Dan Lamothe Now is not the time to slash U.S. foreign aid, more than 120 retired generals and admirals said Monday in a letter to lawmakers, while citing past comments from Defense Secretary Jim Mattis to buttress their case. The letter was released by the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition, which includes business executives, foreign-policy experts and retired senior military officials, as the Trump administration signaled that it will slash international spending while boosting funding for the U.S. military. The signatories include several past service chiefs and combatant commanders. “The State Department, USAID, Millennium Challenge Corporation, Peace Corps and other development agencies are critical to preventing conflict and reducing the need to put our men and women in uniform in harm’s way,” the letter said. “As Secretary James Mattis said while Commander of U.S. Central Command, ‘If you don’t fully fund the State Department, then I need to buy more ammunition.’” The letter added that while the military will “lead the fight against terrorism on the battlefield,” it needs strong partners to combat issues that drive extremism, including insecurity, injustice, hopelessness and lack of opportunity. “We urge you to ensure that resources for the International Affairs Budget keep pace with the growing global threats and opportunities we face,” the letter concluded. “Now is not the time to retreat.” The letter was addressed to Speaker of the House Paul D. Ryan (R-Wis.), Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.). It was released as administration officials said that Trump will announce Tuesday a 10 percent boost in military spending, with a corresponding cut to other federal agencies. Foreign aid, in particular, is expected to face significant budget cuts, as Trump follows through on his agenda. The quote from Mattis cited in the letter came in March 2013 during a hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee a few months before he retired from the Marine Corps. It came in response to a question from Sen. Roger Wicker (R.-Miss.), who inquired whether the U.S. international development budget was helpful to the United States, and has often been used since by advocates for “soft power.” “Yes, sir,” Mattis said at the time. “I would start with the State Department budget. Frankly, they need to be as fully funded as Congress believes appropriate, because if you don’t fund the State Department fully then I need to buy more ammunition ultimately. So I think it’s a cost-benefit ratio. The more we put into the State Department’s diplomacy, hopefully the less we have to put into a military budget as we deal with the outcome of apparent American withdrawal from the international scene.” Many of the officers who signed the letter retired within the past few years, and some led U.S. forces in combat. They include Marine Gen. John R. Allen, the former top U.S. commander in Afghanistan; Army Gen. Pete Chiarelli, vice chief of staff of the Army from 2008 to 2012; Marine Gen. James T. Conway, commandant of the Marine Corps from 2006 to 2010; Adm. Jonathan Greenert, chief of naval operations from 2011 to 2015, and Adm. Eric T. Olson, the chief of U.S. Special Operations Command from 2007 to 2011. At least two officers who signed the letter have previously met with Trump and offered advice on other issues. They are Army Gen. David H. Petraeus, who led troops in Iraq and Afghanistan before serving as director of the Central Intelligence Agency from 2011 to 2012, and Adm. James G. Stavridis, who retired as chief of U.S. European Command and supreme allied commander of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in 2013. http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/retired-generals-cite-past-comments-from-mattis-while-opposing-trump’s-proposed-foreign-aid-cuts/ar-AAnA0bl Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snoslinger Posted February 28, 2017 Share Posted February 28, 2017 come on vince. trump knows more than generals or anyone else in these matters. get with the program. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spin_dry Posted February 28, 2017 Share Posted February 28, 2017 fuck mattis. that's the old way of doing things. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Platinum Contributing Member Jimmy Snacks Posted February 28, 2017 Platinum Contributing Member Share Posted February 28, 2017 (edited) 3 minutes ago, spin_dry said: fuck mattis. that's the old way of doing things. Well enlighten us to the new way of doing things. Edited February 28, 2017 by Biggie Smails Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mileage Psycho Posted February 28, 2017 Author Share Posted February 28, 2017 Just now, Biggie Smails said: Well enlighten us to the new way of doing things. Cut foreign spending. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Platinum Contributing Member Jimmy Snacks Posted February 28, 2017 Platinum Contributing Member Share Posted February 28, 2017 7 minutes ago, Mileage Psycho said: Cut foreign spending. That's it...what about the repercussions of doing that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
f7ben Posted February 28, 2017 Share Posted February 28, 2017 How about these countries pay us to be friends Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zambroski Posted February 28, 2017 Share Posted February 28, 2017 22 minutes ago, Biggie Smails said: That's it...what about the repercussions of doing that? "Crickets". 3 minutes ago, f7ben said: How about these countries pay us to be friends Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mileage Psycho Posted February 28, 2017 Author Share Posted February 28, 2017 24 minutes ago, Biggie Smails said: That's it...what about the repercussions of doing that? The opinion of DEFSEC Mattis is that we will have to spend more on ammunition, and it appears that 120 retired Generals agree with him. Quote The quote from Mattis cited in the letter came in March 2013 during a hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee a few months before he retired from the Marine Corps. It came in response to a question from Sen. Roger Wicker (R.-Miss.), who inquired whether the U.S. international development budget was helpful to the United States, and has often been used since by advocates for “soft power.” “Yes, sir,” Mattis said at the time. “I would start with the State Department budget. Frankly, they need to be as fully funded as Congress believes appropriate, because if you don’t fund the State Department fully then I need to buy more ammunition ultimately. So I think it’s a cost-benefit ratio. The more we put into the State Department’s diplomacy, hopefully the less we have to put into a military budget as we deal with the outcome of apparent American withdrawal from the international scene.” Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spin_dry Posted February 28, 2017 Share Posted February 28, 2017 35 minutes ago, Biggie Smails said: Well enlighten us to the new way of doing things. i was being sarcastic. i like mattis. i like him a lot. i said before that he's somewhat of a barometer in this administration. if he's forced to trade his values, he's gone. i'm all for a strong state dept. and not one that's sole job is to cut business deals. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Platinum Contributing Member Jimmy Snacks Posted February 28, 2017 Platinum Contributing Member Share Posted February 28, 2017 I was looking for an answer from Spin since he is the one that made the assertion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snoslinger Posted February 28, 2017 Share Posted February 28, 2017 do you clowns honestly think this money is just thrown around for nothing? that former admins didn't want to touch it just because? use your fucking heads. our money and support of alot of these places get us stuff in return. less hate being one of them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mileage Psycho Posted February 28, 2017 Author Share Posted February 28, 2017 1 minute ago, spin_dry said: i was being sarcastic. i like mattis. i like him a lot. i said before that he's somewhat of a barometer in this administration. if he's forced to trade his values, he's gone. i'm all for a strong state dept. and not one that's sole job is to cut business deals. Mattis is good guy and we are fortunate to have him as SECDEF, Tillerson is also a good guy to have as SOS, what's really weird is how Trump picks a very smart and tremendously successful CEO to SOS and then denies him from choosing Elliot Abrams as his Deputy all because Abrams criticized Trump in May 2016. Quote But Abrams was nixed from the list of contenders after President Donald Trump learned of Abrams' biting criticism last May of his fitness to become president, the Republican sources said. The President found out about Abrams' outspokenness against Trump after meeting with him on Tuesday to consider him for the position, which would have made him Secretary of State Rex Tillerson's deputy. The meeting went well, but Trump could not get past Abrams' past criticism, the sources said. Abrams, Bush's deputy national security adviser, had emerged as the top contender to become Tillerson's right-hand man. "This is a loss for the State Department and the country and, for that matter, for the President," said one Republican source. Another Republican source with knowledge of what happened said Abrams would not get the job because of "Donald Trump's thin skin and nothing else." Tillerson tried to convince Trump to make Abrams his deputy despite the criticism because he felt he needed his foreign policy experience, according to multiple sources. White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus and senior adviser Jared Kushner also strongly supported Abrams and urged Trump to reconsider, the sources said. Abrams penned an opinion piece in May in The Weekly Standard titled "When You Can't Stand Your Candidate" after Trump clinched enough support to become the GOP's presumptive nominee. http://www.cnn.com/2017/02/10/politics/elliott-abrams-trump-state-department-tillerson/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Platinum Contributing Member Jimmy Snacks Posted February 28, 2017 Platinum Contributing Member Share Posted February 28, 2017 (edited) 5 minutes ago, Snoslinger said: do you clowns honestly think this money is just thrown around for nothing? that former admins didn't want to touch it just because? use your fucking heads. our money and support of alot of these places get us stuff in return. less hate being one of them. Who are all these clowns that you speak of? I just reread the posts and nobody said anything remotely close to what you just typed. This is why nobody wants to engage you because you come into a thread with a bunch of preconceived notions and try to apply them whether they fit or not. Edited February 28, 2017 by Biggie Smails Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snoslinger Posted February 28, 2017 Share Posted February 28, 2017 1 minute ago, Biggie Smails said: Other than Spin who are all these clowns that you speak of? I just reread the posts and nobody said anything remotely close to what you just typed. .7ben, zambroski, and anyone else who doesn't agree with the op. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zambroski Posted February 28, 2017 Share Posted February 28, 2017 7 minutes ago, Snoslinger said: do you clowns honestly think this money is just thrown around for nothing? that former admins didn't want to touch it just because? use your fucking heads. our money and support of alot of these places get us stuff in return. less hate being one of them. We buy "less hate". Idiocy. 2 minutes ago, Snoslinger said: .7ben, zambroski, and anyone else who doesn't agree with the op. Double idiocy....you don't even know what the fuck the thread is about. Jesus fucking Christ. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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