"The absence of leadership over the past six years has had horrific consequences all across the globe, and it is getting worse day by day," Kevin McCarthy said. (AP Photo)
McCarthy slams 'horrific consequences' of Obama
House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., who seems almost certain to be the next speaker of the House, said President Obama has left a shattered legacy of U.S. foreign policy over the last six years, as America has become weaker and allowed violent extremists to rise up around the world.
"The absence of leadership over the past six years has had horrific consequences all across the globe, and it is getting worse day by day," he said in a foreign policy speech in Washington, D.C.
"Our enemies, be they rogue nations or terrorist groups, see us talk about red lines not to be crossed, then defiantly challenge us by crossing them," he said. "Sadly, all too often, America makes bold claims followed by a weak response, or no response at all."
He said Obama's weakness and withdrawal emboldened the Islamic State, and allowed the U.S. to agree to a nuclear deal with Iran that will only threaten Israel further.
McCarthy said he looks up to two presidents in particular, Ronald Reagan and Abraham Lincoln, and said he believes both would encourage presidents today to believe in American exceptionalism, and to stress that peace without freedom is "meaningless."
"Carter and Obama may have won the peace prize, but who made the world more free?" he said. "It was Reagan."
Another lesson is not to put off tough decisions, but McCarthy said Obama has failed here, and is "just waiting to dump a multitude of problems on the next president." Many Republicans have said the Iran nuclear deal will likely become a huge implementation problem for the next president, who may also have to consider abandoning the deal.
But McCarthy said Obama's decision not to submit that agreement as a treaty could end up being a positive for the next president, since he or she will be able to ignore it. "The next president can instead take a whole new approach, one based on a position of strength, not endless concessions," he said.
Elsewhere, McCarthy said Obama's decision to leave Iraq directly contributed to the slaughter of innocents by the Islamic State, and said the U.S. needs an "entirely new policy in Iraq and Syria."
"[W]ithout a clearly stated framework for action, our enemies will be emboldened by our uncertainty and our allies paralyzed by indecision," he said. "Does that sound familiar? It's happening right now."
The idea of maintaining peace through strength means a stronger U.S. military is needed, he said, not the military that has dwindled under Obama. He said lower troop levels and withdrawals around the world essentially "rolled out the red carpet" to Russian President Vladimir Putin's regional ambitions.
McCarthy is among those Republicans who have called on Obama to arm Ukraine against Russia's aggression, and he repeated that argument Monday.
"Stop letting Putin set the agenda," McCarthy suggested. "Stop turning a blind eye to Russian aggression. It is time for America to step up, not back down, and that starts with providing Ukrainian fighting forces lethal aid."
McCarthy started by saying Obama has spent his entire presidency blaming President George W. Bush for the state of the world, but said Reagan and Lincoln would have dismissed that political tactic.
"Don't blame others for your problems," he said. "We've had years of blaming Bush, but Lincoln never blamed Buchanan. It's time to look forward and solve the problems instead of blaming the past."
McCarthy is widely expected to be the next House speaker, as Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, said he would retire from Congress by the end of October.
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