猫咪社区

鈥淵es, John Bolton Really Is That Dangerous鈥� read a from the New York Times.

Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) said he 鈥渃an鈥檛 imagine a more reckless, more dangerous pick鈥� for MSNBC.

鈥淯.S. War with North Korea and Iran More Likely With John Bolton Running National Security鈥� read a .

鈥淚t鈥檚 time to panic now: John Bolton鈥檚 appointment as national security adviser puts us on a path to war,鈥� .

The new head of President Trump鈥檚 national security policy is so belligerent that a his appointment as ambassador to the United Nations under President George W. Bush. He was able to serve only as a recess appointee.

Bolton was part of the neoconservative group that pressed for the invasion of Iraq鈥� cherry-pick intelligence about, for example, weapons of mass destruction, supporting the case for war and sidelining opposing viewpoints.

He about the decision to invade Iraq and overthrow Saddam Hussein.

In the 1990s, Bolton said that the United Nations headquarters could lose several floors and never be missed. He is chair of the Gatestone Institute, an anti-Muslim think tank that 鈥渞outinely portrays Muslim migrants and refugees as an existential threat to Europe and the United States,鈥� according to the Intercept.

He writes commentaries that press for and . And his view on recent plans for talks with North Korea, brokered by South Korea, is dismissive: It is worth talking with North Korea only to 鈥渇oreshorten the amount of time that we鈥檙e going to waste in negotiations that will never produce the result we want,鈥� 聽on Fox News at Night.

The alarm over the Bolton appointment isn鈥檛 just among progressives. The American Conservative 鈥渁n ideologue whose credo dogmatizes violence against enemies regardless of consequences or cost.鈥�

In another article for The American Conservative, , 鈥淗e has been obsessed for many years with going to war against the Islamic Republic, calling repeatedly for bombing Iran in his regular appearances on Fox News, without the slightest indication that he understands the consequences of such a policy.鈥�

For years, Trump criticized U.S. intervention in Iraq. 鈥淏ut somehow,鈥� as , 鈥渋n his King George madness, Trump has circled back to elevate one of the chief Iraq war hawks to be his national security adviser.鈥�

Given Trump鈥檚 disdain for real facts and policy briefings鈥攁nd his craving for flattery, bold moves, and attention鈥擩ohn Bolton鈥檚 appointment as Trump鈥檚 chief foreign policy advisor is terrifying. The appointment requires no Senate ratification, so effective responses are hard to find. However, there are plans for pushing back, and the stakes couldn鈥檛 be higher.

What鈥檚 a democracy to do?

Despite Trump鈥檚 own disparagement of the Iran nuclear deal, his defense secretary, Jim Mattis, that the deal is working.

In Korea, South Korean President Moon Jae-in has succeeded in with North Korea, and a summit with the North鈥檚 Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un is scheduled for April.

President Trump has agreed to meet with the North Korean leader. And, according to a report from Moon鈥檚 national security advisor, North Korea has made clear that if it can be assured that it will not be attacked.

鈥淭he North side clearly affirmed its commitment to the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and said it would have no reason to possess nuclear weapons should the safety of its regime be guaranteed and military threats against North Korea removed,” said a South Korean presidential spokesperson, .

So peace is certainly a possibility. But pre-emptive strikes, including nuclear strikes, and all-out warfare are much easier to envision with the appointment of Bolton.

And Bolton is not the only pro-war appointee in recent days. Rex Tillerson is out as secretary of state, to be replaced by CIA Director Mike Pompeo, while Gina Haspel will replace Pompeo as director of the CIA.

What accounts for Trump鈥檚 pro-war appointees?

Congress should step up to its responsibilities under the Constitution and the 1973 War Powers Act.

It could be deflection. 鈥淎 president who is desperate to try to turn the news away from the myriad of scandals under which he is buried is going to have someone who is going to eagerly recommend to him that you go around Congress and start what could be catastrophic war with North Korea and Iran,鈥� Senator Chris Murphy following the announcement of the Bolton appointment.

So what can avert disastrous military conflict with Iran, North Korea, and potentially also with China and Russia?

Lawrence Wilkerson, former chief of staff to Colin Powell, is calling on Congress to challenge the Trump administration鈥檚 foreign policy, starting with the confirmation hearings for Pompeo and Haspel. 鈥淚f Americans believe that 17 straight years of war is enough, they need to stand by: another 17 or more is in the offing鈥欌�� he wrote in a commentary for Lobe Log headlined 鈥�.鈥�

Congress should step up to its responsibilities under the Constitution and the 1973 War Powers Act, according to Daniel DePetris, a fellow at Defense Priorities. Congress has a number of tools at its disposal, including the power to allocate or withhold funding for military endeavors. 鈥淭he most effective tool Congress can employ, however, is following the Constitution and authorizing wars before the first U.S. soldier is deployed,鈥� . 鈥淐ongress can be taken seriously on national security again if members in both houses and in both parties assert the legislative tools at their disposal and exhibit more political courage.鈥�

In a New York Times column titled 鈥�,鈥� Michelle Goldberg wrote that 鈥渢he people who were supposed to be the adults in the room aren鈥檛 in the room anymore. The self-styled grown-ups are, for the most part, being replaced by lackeys and ideologues.鈥�

Then she calls on former Trump appointees, who claimed to have a stabilizing influence on the Trump presidency, to level with Americans: 鈥淲hatever their accomplishments, if from their privileged perches these people saw the president as a dangerous fool in need of babysitting, it鈥檚 now time for some of them to say so publicly. 鈥� If these people see the administration as unequipped to handle an emergency, they owe the country a firsthand account of our vulnerability.鈥�

And what policies could help?

The United States needs a no-first-use policy on nuclear weapons, , co-author of 鈥淕ame Theory and National Security,鈥� in the Washington Post. China, India, and Israel have all recognized a version of this policy, he writes.

鈥淭here is great danger in these times, but the future remains unwritten and ours to shape.鈥�

鈥淚f more and more nuclear states adopted NFU policies,鈥� he wrote, 鈥渢he world might banish the threat of nuclear war, bringing a new global equilibrium.鈥�

advocates a no-first-use policy, and also calls for municipal officials and elected bodies to endorse four other steps to avert nuclear war: ending the sole, unchecked authority of any U.S. president to launch a nuclear attack; taking nuclear weapons off hair-trigger alert; cancelling the plan to replace the U.S. nuclear arsenal with enhanced weapons (at a cost of $1.7 trillion over three decades); and actively pursuing a verifiable agreement among nuclear-armed states to eliminate their nuclear arsenals.

Another organization, , is calling for action from states and local officials to put a check on the president鈥檚 鈥渁bsolute nuclear authority.鈥� The group describes itself as a grassroots movement 鈥渓ed by women, people of color, and young people 鈥� fighting for a world that chooses cooperation over fear, humanity over profit, and peace over war.鈥�

A widespread show of support at the local level could embolden national action. Young people, traumatized by school shootings and leading a remarkable movement against gun violence, could team up with baby boomers, who were told they should duck under a school desk in the event of a nuclear attack. American women can join their sisters across the world, especially Iranian and Korean women.

Christine Ahn, is among those calling on women to join forces. Ahn is founder and international coordinator of Women Cross DMZ, which is working for a peace treaty to end the Korean War, reunite families, and ensure women鈥檚 leadership in peace-building. Ahn and 30 women peacemakers from 15 countries joined together in 2015 for a walk across the de-militarized zone separating North and South Korea, along with 10,000 Korean women from both North and South.

鈥淚鈥檓 organizing another women鈥檚 peace walk May 24鈥�28,鈥� she said in an email. The group hopes to walk聽once again聽across the DMZ. But even if they are not allowed to do that, Ahn still believes it鈥檚 important to show support for the administration of President Moon Jae-in, who was elected last year on a platform that included closer ties with the North, after a corruption scandal led to the impeachment of his predecessor.

鈥淪outh Korea is probably the most democratic country in the world today and is standing up against Trump,鈥� Ahn wrote. 鈥淚f South Korea doesn鈥檛 go along with U.S. designs (and it鈥檚 clear what Bolton鈥檚 playbook is), no doubt the U.S. will use all its powers (covert too). So we really need to help protect Korea now.鈥�

On a March 18 phone call with Bernie Sanders, Ahn called for messages of solidarity. 鈥淭here is great danger in these times, but the future remains unwritten and ours to shape. 鈥� Let us not turn our backs on the Korean people, but give them our global solidarity.鈥�

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Sarah van Gelder is a co-founder and columnist at 猫咪社区!, founder of PeoplesHub, and author of The Revolution Where You Live: Stories from a 12,000-Mile Journey Through a New America. Connect:

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