Where is Teddy Roosevelt When We Need Him?

The constant cacophony of bumbling babbling from our leaders in Washington these days with regard to the ongoing conflict with Iran brings to mind the wisdom of former President Theodore Roosevelt. On September 1, 1901 — just two weeks before he became President upon the assassination of President William McKinley — Roosevelt offered timeless foreign policy advice in a speech he delivered at the Minnesota State Fair:

“Speak softly and carry a big stick — you will go far. If a man continually blusters, if he lacks civility, a big stick will not save him from trouble; and neither will speaking softly avail, if back of the softness there does not lie strength, power. In private life there are few things more obnoxious than the man who is always loudly boasting; and if the boaster is not prepared to back up his words his position becomes absolutely contemptible. So it is with the nation. It is both foolish and undignified to indulge in undue self-glorification, and above all, in loose-tongued denunciation of other peoples.”

Today, the United States finds itself mired in a costly conflict with Iran. Even Israel, which has the most direct interest in subduing Iran, is sitting this one out, content to let the U.S. carry the ball.

Yet our leaders are pursuing a policy that is the antithesis of Roosevelt’s counsel. We boast loudly, but our diplomatic and military strategy lacks a true “stick” against an enemy comprised of zealots and fanatics who know they can outlast a traditional military campaign.

This approach fails to serve our national interests, threatens the stability of the global economy, and risks severe domestic financial fallout. Most importantly, the brave members of the military are putting their  lives on the line for a vague and ill-defined policy that has no clear military objective.

Now, as both Washington and Tehran dig in their heels following a collapsed truce, we must reject empty bluster. Our leaders must return to a strategy where measured diplomacy replaces pointless and endless bombing.