HERE'S HOW YOU LOSE AN EMPIRE IN REAL TIME

I posted the following from the NY Times on my FB page ...

A FB friend of mine, who fancies himself a foreign policy expert, tried to make the claim that Russia getting a missile system shipment from Russia had nothing to do with Trump. I'm not sure if he believes these developments aren't a big deal, but since he believes Trump didn't have anything to do with emboldening Russia he's probably convinced himself that Russia sending missiles to Turkey is nothing to worry about.

News Alert: Yes, it's a big deal ... let makes that "bigly".

In any case, I responded to his post, making sure to explain why Russia sending missiles to Turkey has Donald Trump's fingerprints all over the story. Enjoy ...

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Turkish President Erdogan is pretty sure that he can do what he wants with [Donald} Trump. Why? Because Trump's a freaking moron, and the entire global community knows he can be swayed our bought off by flattery and empty promises ([Vladimir] Putin, Kim Jong Un and [MBS] Bonesaw in Saudi Arabia have no respect for him).

To be sure, both the State and Defense departments support imposing the harshest sanctions on Turkey (both defense [related] and economic). We also need to recognize that relations with Turkey have been sliding since we went into Iraq, and the Turks began viewing the U.S. as a destabilizing element in the region (especially with our support for Kurdish militias in Syria).

But the reality is Trump, whose "personal" (read, "gullibility") relationship with Turkish President Erdogan leads Erdogan to believe that Trump might agree to sanction, and then simply "delay" implementing them like he's done with Russian sanctions. Or, and this is more probable, Trump might simply just ignore implementing them, or waive them completely when no one's looking. The fact that he's already waffled and shifted positions with Turkey is one of the reasons Russia's become so emboldened, while Erdogan has no respect for Trump. 

What all of this means is that U.S. military jets, and NATO's defensive positions, get further compromised; something Putin's been after for years. Trump's simply handing U.S. leadership in the region to Putin (or Putin's taking it and telling Trump to back off) because everyone knows Trump has no clue about international relations or, quite simply, doesn't know what the hell he's doing on any complex matter.

Describing the debate within the administration, one U.S. official said while the nation's national security apparatus will push for full sanctions “Erdogan believes he can talk Trump out of anything.” 

MAGA in action, and it's dragging the nation and our security networks down with it.

*******, you might have already read these but if not, they're a good primer on what's happening. 

https://foreignpolicy.com/.../in-debate-over-turkey.../

https://www.foreignaffairs.com/.../why-turkey-turned-its...

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Here's the point: The world order is starting to come apart, one thread at a time, and Donald Trump has no idea how his ignorance and gullibility is accelerating the process. He literally is selling American foreign policy out to the highest bidder ... and the gushiest flatter.

American hegemony lies in the balance ... which is something else Team Trump has no clue about.

- Mark