Robert Kimmitt, the number two guy at the Treasury Department, has called for our allies to refrain from investing in Iran. It’s more a plea than an act of leadership, at least to judge from the article in the FT.
For those who think we’re gearing up for war with Iran, I think Kimmett’s language shows that quite the opposite is taking place. His big punch line, after all, is this:
Mr Kimmitt said foreign companies doing business with Iran faced unusual problems “because it’s very difficult to know whether the person you’re dealing with is, in fact, doing what he says, or could be connected, covertly or otherwise, with the [nuclear] proliferation programme”.
He said he was pleased with efforts in France, Germany, Italy and the UK to reduce export credits to Iran. Export credits, he said, “should not be used to subsidise the risks that Iran has brought on itself”.
But that’s not the point, which is that our money should not be used to finance acts of terror against us and our friends. “Subsidize the risks?” Pfui.
It is truly pathetic when the Iranian regime operatives are directly and indirectly killing American troops and the civilians of both Iraq and Afghanistan in an undeclared war against us, and the most we get from our officials are these anemic and ineffective half-measures in trade restrictions.
Even at that, when we do not even mean to impose these trade curbs against our own corporations as evident by the above, let alone Europeans who have been the largest volume trade partners of Iran for at least the past decade.
This is futile. It is blowing in the wind.
With this kind of paralyzed inaction and weakness towards Iranian Theo-dictatorship in Washington, no wonder certain European interest vested in Iran regime survival in one form or another have already plotted the future course and form of the Iranian regime to their benefit.
And this is already happening more than a year before Hillary (or Barack Hussein Obama) is potential inauguration! God help us all.
http://mor2com.blogspot.com/
ML:
Don’t lose all perspective, please. The war is declared, not undeclared; Khomeini declared war on us in 1979, and all those people chanting “death to America” confirm the state of war.
We are not doing nothing. We have killed and captured many hundreds and perhaps thousands of Iranians in Iraq and Afghanistan.
And it remains to be seen what various Europeans are going to do when the latest attempt at sanctions either succeeds or, more likely, fails at the UN. And that is unknowable…
Sorry, last para should read as follows. Thanks:
And this is already happening more than a year before Hillary’s (or Barack Hussein Obama’s) potential inauguration?! God help us all.
http://mor2com.blogspot.com/
Recall Professor, Bush appointed all Democrats throughout Treasury.
Chalk it up to his idiotic and nauseating “new tone.”
Do an internet search on it, you’ll see what I mean.
Just more utter and supreme incompetence from this administration.
Or give a call to some of your contacts in Washington. Upper levels of Treasury are chock a block with Dems.
Goldman Sachs in particular.
ML:
On the contrary, Treasury has probably the most aggressive team and has probably done as much damage to the mullahs as any other, surely much more than CIA or State. Stuart Levy, Matt Leavitt (who recently left), David Aufhauser et. al. have been terrific. You calling Larry Lindsay a Democrat? I don’t think so.
All that nonsense about Goldman Sachs running the world is as silly as the belief that Great Britain runs the world. They succeed when they convince the president of the united states…which does happen, but does not always happen by any means.
Seems you misunderstood me Professor.
I must not have made myself clear.
This isn’t about some Jewish conspiracy. That’s not what I meant to imply by mentioning Goldman Sachs.
I read an article that said the upper levels of Treasury were being stacked with Democrats, political appointees all. And a good many of them were coming from Goldman Sachs. So many Democrats were getting appointed to Undersecretary positions, that Republicans up on the Hill were getting irritated, profoundly irritated. Many openly mocked the administration’s fixation on “new tone,” asking which Democrat administration would effectively staff a whole Department with Democrats.
It seems that Goldman Sachs has done some work with China. And the administation, hoping to make use of previous business interaction on the part of Goldman Sachs, decided to appoint them to Treasury, for the purpose of facilitating those discussions on China allowing their currency to float freely on the exchange markets.
Of course these conversations have come to nothing. They were pursued in the typical administration manner. Id est, half-heartedly.
There were so many Goldman Sachs people sitting down with Chinese governmental officials, that supposedly they were puzzled. And had to ask our officials if this indeed was a goverment to government discussion, or China to Goldman Sachs.
But as for your comment about the “aggressiveness” of Tresury pursuing the mullahs, well, in this case, “aggressive” is a very relative term isn’t it.
Sure Treasury appears “aggressive” when compared to State and CIA. But then again, who wouldn’t? The Little Sisters of the Poor appear serious when compared to State and CIA.
CIA should have been completely closed down after 9/11. And a new, serious, war-waging, war-winning intelligence agency erected in its stead. And State should have been thorougly reshuffled and reorganized. The Bureau for Near East Affairs has entirely too much sway in Foggy Bottom.
But I’m sorry you misunderstood me.
I suppose in this day and age, with so many tossing around accusations of Neo-Conservative dominance, id est, Jewish dominance, that one can be excused for being quick on the trigger. But that wasn’t my meaning at all.
Unrelated, but I saw you on C-span recently. You did an excellent job So much so that I was going to fire off an email to you congratulating you on your performance. But I never got around to it.
ML:
Thanks for the kind words. In fact, I didn’t think there was anything about Jews in what you wrote, I was just pointing out that in this lackluster administration Treasury has been one of the best agencies.
Well, I suppose we should be grateful to God for any allies we have, from whatever source, whatever Department.
But you did a great job on C-span. And that wasn’t mere flattery. That’s a fact.