Wednesday, May 13, 2009

North Korea and the Problems with U.S. Policy

This video is from The Center for Security Policy. It was filmed during their “usually-off-the-record” National Security Luncheon on Capitol Hill.


The speaker, Mark Groombridge, served as John Bolton’s special assistant at the State Department when the latter was Under Secretary for Arms Control and International Security. He has also been a fellow at the Cato Institute and at the American Enterprise Institute, both in Washington, D.C.

What he has to say is frank and provocative, especially when it comes to having a coherent policy regarding North Korea.

He takes the Bush administration to task for its treatment of Japan, and finds Obama’s ideas about limiting nuclear weapons naïve. His off-hand comments about the State Department are amusing, and all too true.

NOTE: the sound quality isn't real clear, but it's worth the effort to listen. You can tell the influence John Bolton had on him.

[post ends here]

4 comments:

Ron Russell said...

The policies for North Korea have been all over the place from the Clinton Era to now. Truth is not administration know what to do about this rogue state. I don't really know what is best, my feelings are mixed on this issue where they are generally direct and clear on most issues

Anonymous said...

Excellent video. Thanks for posting, Dymphna.

PatriotUSA said...

Great video and this guy is talking some truthful stuff. NK has been allowed to run roughshod over every attempt to reign them in. The people live in abject poverty while dear leader deludes himself as a great, noble leader that the people of NK love, at gunpoint. Another rogue state that does pose a danger and needs to be bushwhacked. Dear leader and his buddies need to have an "accident" but all this cowardly administration will do is beg China to help out, and make the USA look even more foolish and incompetent than it already does since 1/20/09. Thanks for posting this Dymphna, you are doing a great job!!!!!!!!

Dymphna said...

Ron Russell--

I agree with you: the lack of a consistent,robust policy toward North Korea has left us in a mess.

Look at the video again. You can pick out what he's saying is the solution. Not that it will "solve" the horror that is North Korea. Rather, a consistent and tough response to them will at least be congruent with what the US claims its values are.

Notice the little digs he gets in about the State Department? He knows that place from the inside. With them in charge, we simply reel from one crisis to the next without ever changing anything.