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Anil Anwar CEO / Editor In Chief Charles Lingerfelt Managing editor & Senior Associate Publisher Editor Matt Snape Editorial Member David Clarke Raven Youngblood

CHRISTIAN TIMES MAGAZINE

ISSUE 35 / OCT Published in United States of America Copyright Š 2019 by Christian Times Magazine (CTM) All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, For permission requests, www.ctimesmag.com 972 - 533- 3804

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ISSUE 35 - SEPTEMBER 2019

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Inside

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YOUR GUIDE TO ISSUE NO.35

SAVIOR OR VILLAIN DONALD TRUMP THE SYMBOL OF THE DEBATE

BY KATHERINE SCHOONOVER

16

INTERVIEW WITH CAPT. ALLEN CLARK(U S ARMY RETIRED) Interview Conducted by Charles Lingerfelt

MY MESSAGE TO THE SYRIAN KURDS

By Charles Lingerfelt

24

08 20

HOW CAN WE RESOLVE THE VENEZUELAN CRISIS

By Matt Snape

Inside

www.ctimesmag.com

YOUR GUIDE TO ISSUE NO.35

IT'S HIGH TIME FOR CHANGE IN THE DEMOCRAT PARTY

28

By David Colbert

REGRESSIVE RHODE ISLAND

By Paul McCabeÂ

GUN CONTROL

By Chris Grahn Howard

31 35

IS LINDSEY GRAHAM ABOUT TO RESCUE TRUMP'S SYRIAN POLICY

37

IS DEMOCRATS TO STRATEGY TO DEFEAT TRUMP'S FALLING APART

39

By Matt Snape

By Matt Snape

CREDIT: NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP/

PAGE 8

GETTY IMAGES

Savior or Villain

DONALD TRUMP The Symbol of the Debate

By Katherine Schoonover

C T I M E S M A G . C O M

P A G E

November the 5th is only a few weeks away and everyone

is

busy

working

hard.

With

each

election, particularly elections held during critical times

for

thought

the

of

nation

losing

to

as the

a

whole,

comes

opposition,

all

the

of

the

factors that could contribute to a potential loss, and

the

impact

that

the

should they get elected. factor

everyone

is

most

opposition

will

have

Donald Trump is the concerned

with

at

the

moment, and no one knows for sure how public opinion will impact the elections. All anyone is thinking about is how many of the voters love or hate Trump and whether it will help or hurt their chances. It

is

particularly

difficult

for

those

involved with state and local races in years like this,

that

can

be

significantly

impacted

by

national issues and factors beyond their control.

This year, everyone in both parties is on edge as the nation creeps closer towards the precipice that is November 3, 2020.

Every election between

now and then is seen as a potential bellwether for the

upcoming

presidential

election

and

the

potential direction of the nation, whether that is true or not. Politicians running this year will be caught up in the national storm not knowing whether the wind will be at their backs or if they will be blown aside by the oncoming hurricane barreling down on them from DC.

It is incredibly frustrating to know that what you do

and

who

you

are

personally

could

be

completely ignored in your own race, and a vote for or against you could be determined entirely by the actions of others, and a tiny letter next to your name.

Everyone

is

pointing

the

finger

at

everyone and everything around them not sure who or what to praise or blame.

9

C T I M E S M A G . C O M

P A G E

“all eyes are on

1 0

“The whole

President Trump” dispute is pretty However, one thing is certain, and that is that all eyes are on President Trump who has become the

much out of the

symbol of the national debate and the linchpin that will determine the direction of the United States and the Western World. Although Trump is seen as the most critical factor, and at this point, he may be, he is not the reason that the nation or the parties are in the

position

that

they

are

in.

His

presence

closet at this point”

in

politics is the result of the failures and successes of both

parties

and

their

elected

officials.

Interestingly enough, he is representative of the best and

worst

of

both

parties,

as

well

as

the

public

itself, and as a result, is rallying support from all corners of the United States from those unwilling to walk,

or

lemmings

in

this

case,

mindlessly

sprint

hurling

over

the

cliff

themselves

to

like their

President

Trump

position

of

is

in

being

the

both

critical the

and

symbolic

savior and villain in the drama that is unfolding.

He

is the man who has stepped forward to try to lead the nation back towards Americanism and away from the specter of Socialism that has destroyed nations and caused the murders of millions of people. slowly

own destruction.

Donald

unenviable

undoing

the

complex

web

of

Trump is

policies

that

have been incrementally transforming the nation over time and at an ever-increasing rate.

No One Knows What to Expect

In spite of all of the posturing that we see, no one is sure what will happen this November, and definitely not November 2020. and we all know it. edge

as

American

we

Everything is on the line now We have been teetering on the

consider

Experiment

abandoning

and

the

stakes

the

Great

are

high.

Hardly anyone is even bothering to whisper about or deny the attempts at a socialist takeover or a

Most Republicans have been desperate for someone with the strength, guts, and knowledge to do this, and are

ecstatic

to

finally

see

someone

directly

addressing the problems they have been concerned about. They see Trump as the savior of the Republic and are unconcerned by the hypocritical attacks on his character by those seen as even more corrupt, and out to dismantle the nation that they value.

desire to dismantle the U.S. Constitution one article and amendment at a time.

The whole dispute is

pretty much out of the closet at this point and the Democratic Party candidates, their policy positions, and

the

support

abundantly clear.

that

they

have,

has

made

that

Some

Republicans,

Trump’s

however,

imperfections,

can

seem

barely

blinded

disguise

by their

disdain for what they see as his coarse and common behavior,

and

seethe

at

the

idea

that

an

outsider

walked in and almost effortlessly did what the insider ivy

league

gentlemen

been unable to do.

they

had

been

backing

had

Their loathing almost equals the

loathing of the Democrats who are livid at being beaten and seeing all their hard work being undone as they had gotten so close to their goal that they could taste it

C T I M E S M A G . C O M

P A G E

“all eyes are on

1 1

“The whole

President Trump” dispute is pretty However, one thing is certain, and that is that all eyes are on President Trump who has become the

much out of the

symbol of the national debate and the linchpin that will determine the direction of the United States and the Western World. Although Trump is seen as the most critical factor, and at this point, he may be, he is not the reason that the nation or the parties are in

closet at this point”

the position that they are in. His presence in politics is the result of the failures and successes of both parties

and

their

elected

officials.

Interestingly

enough, he is representative of the best and worst of both parties, as well as the public itself, and as a result, is rallying support from all corners of the United States from those unwilling to walk, or in this case, sprint over the cliff like lemmings mindlessly

President

Trump

is

in

the

critical

and villain in the drama that is unfolding.

and

He is the

man who has stepped forward to try to lead the nation back towards Americanism and away from the specter of Socialism that has destroyed nations and caused the murders

hurling themselves to their own destruction.

Donald

unenviable position of being both the symbolic savior

of

millions

of

people.

Trump

is

slowly

undoing the complex web of policies that have been incrementally transforming the nation over time and

No One Knows What to Expect

at an ever-increasing rate.

In spite of all of the posturing that we see, no one is sure what will happen this November, and definitely not November 2020. and we all know it.

Everything is on the line now We have been teetering on the

edge as we consider abandoning the Great American Experiment and the stakes are high. is

even

bothering

attempts

at

dismantle

a

the

to

socialist U.S.

out

of

the

about

takeover

Constitution

amendment at a time. much

whisper

Hardly anyone

or

or

deny

a

desire

one

article

the to and

the

support

abundantly clear.

that

with the strength, guts, and knowledge to do this, and are ecstatic to finally see someone directly addressing the problems they have been concerned about. see

Trump

as

unconcerned

the

by

savior

the

of

the

Republic

hypocritical

attacks

They

and

are

on

his

character by those seen as even more corrupt, and out to dismantle the nation that they value.

The whole dispute is pretty

closet

at

this

point

and

the

Democratic Party candidates, their policy positions, and

Most Republicans have been desperate for someone

they

have,

has

made

that

Some

Republicans,

Trump’s

however,

imperfections,

can

seem

barely

blinded disguise

by their

disdain for what they see as his coarse and common behavior,

and

seethe

at

the

idea

that

an

outsider

walked in and almost effortlessly did what the insider ivy league gentlemen they had been backing had been unable loathing

to of

do. the

Their

loathing

Democrats

who

almost are

equals

livid

at

the

being

beaten and seeing all their hard work being undone as they had gotten so close to their goal that they could taste it

C T I M E S M A G . C O M

P A G E

1 2

“They have been The Fears of the Democrats

The Democrats are at their wits end over Donald Trump and the loss of the 2016 presidential election. They do not understand why the man they cast as the villain won, why anyone would support him, why their policies were rejected, why their attacks have had little to no impact, and whether there is any way that they can attack him that would result in a loss of support for “Teflon Don,” his removal from office, or his loss in 2020.

One of the biggest mistakes that you can make in politics is to believe your own propaganda and that is precisely what has happened to the Democrats. They never bothered to ask themselves what it was about them and their ideas that made people not want to vote for them.

They falsely vilified their opposition as a bunch of bigots and Nazis in order to win the election and they did such a good job promoting it that they began to believe it themselves, and lost all sense of reality and proportion in the process. They slapped a bunch of pictures of famous Republicans up on the walls at the DNC convention, tried to pass off the Republican Party’s history as their own, and then tried to bully and insult their way into the hearts of the voters.

The people they were vilifying knew that it was not true, and the Democrats lost support because of it. It is incredibly hard to win an election when you do not understand the voters. It is also rather difficult to convince people to vote for you when you insult and falsely accuse them of immorality that they themselves would consider deplorable were they true. All these issues played a significant role in their loss in 2016 and will likely play a role in 2019 but to a lesser degree.

trying to remove President Trump from office since before he was even sworn in” Their subsequent behavior has only made it worse.

Their desperation to remove President Trump from office began before he was even sworn in as they tried

everything

from

insulting

his

supporters,

to

protests, to endless investigations, to even trying to have him declared insane and removing him from office using the 25th Amendment.

When asked about the elections in November hardly any of them are even thinking about the 2019 races.

They are almost entirely focused on Donald Trump and

2020.

That

is

of

course

not

true

of

those

working on the 2019 races, but even they are focused on 2020 and how it could impact 2019.

Now they have a lineup of candidates for President, each

one

more

extreme

than

the

next,

and

are

terrified that they might have made a mistake as they are blindly betting it all on the hope that the public is ready

to

embrace

Socialism,

by

name,

at

knowing that it could cost them everything.

last, They

might make it through 2019 but their strategy does not bode well for 2020 as the rising concern among business

leaders

and

becoming apparent.

the

voters,

in

general,

is

C T I M E S M A G . C O M

In addition, they are looking slightly deranged having gone off the deep end over the now debunked Russia collusion investigation and their other mad schemes to remove the President of the United States from office.

With each attempt to destroy Trump over increasingly fantastic accusations unendingly dragging out in the media resulting in dismal failures only diminishing the potency of their maniacal and incessant bleats to stop the wolf that never seems to materialize.

P A G E

1 3

Democrats are not likely to vote for Republicans as a rule and while they may have crossed over to vote for Trump in 2016, and might again in 2020, that does not

mean

that

they

Republicans in 2019.

will

cross

over

for

other

Running for election in 2019 is

a bit riskier than usual. The same can

Sadly, if all Republicans had jumped on board with Donald

Trump

in

the

beginning,

shored

up

each

other’s failings with strengths, and gotten more done, it is likely that the benefits of being associated with

Fortunately for them, they have a pretty substantial election machine that kicks in every year and have clearly been importing money to target Republicans in state and local elections after Republicans quietly took over a significant number of state legislatures all around the United States. If they are able to win enough state and local elections in 2019, they hope the momentum will be enough to carry them through in 2020, but I do not think it will.

Trump and the Republican Party would be less risky this year.

Fortunately for the Republicans, they have gotten a lot done and what they did not get done together, due to one roadblock or another, Trump has been busy trying to create workarounds for.

The “Never Trumpers” are still creating obstacles for Trump and his supporters to overcome but the sky did not

The Fears of the Republicans

fall,

the

economy

is

booming,

unemployment

numbers are at record lows, and no nuclear buttons have been pushed, so they should be able to safely

The Democrats are not the only ones panicking.

The Republican Party is still torn over support for Donald Trump and struggling with the longstanding issues that have been at the heart of Republican failures since Ronald Reagan left office. They are deeply concerned that public opinion of Trump will hurt them in the 2019 elections. They are not sure whether being associated with him, because they have an “R” next to their names, will help or hurt them. They are not sure whether they should be seen as supporters or adversaries of Trump and the truth is that both positions will help and hurt them.

turn out in 2019 and maybe even 2020.

It does not hurt that the Democrats have taken such a dramatic leap to the left, so far in fact that the old left looks like the right in comparison, striking fear in the hearts of rational adults. That just might be enough to

offset

the

anti-Trump

sentiment

by

some

Independents and Republicans who do not like Trump and whose votes could be influenced just enough by the behavior of the national Democrats to carry the day this November. It is hard to say though as people are hunkering down and keeping their real opinions to themselves just as they did in 2016.

C T I M E S M A G . C O M

P A G E

1 4

Unfortunately, the GOP is still struggling with many of the same old PR and branding problems that they have been for decades. Thanks to Trump, Limbaugh, D’Souza, the Daily Wire, PragerU, Tucker Carlson, and a handful of former and current legislators the tide is turning, and the party finally has some ammunition.

Savior or Villain?

Is Donald Trump the savior or the villain? He may or may not be the savior, but he is not the villain either. If you are a Republican, it is time to admit that he just might be the savior you have hoped for. He has been a net gain for the GOP as well as the nation and you had better do your part in this fight or you may not have another chance to fix what you are convinced that you can live through and fix later. If you are a Democrat, you had better wake up to the fact that he and his followers are not the villains you have convinced yourselves that they are, or you will not stand a chance. You cast too wide a net when you tried to catch half the nation.

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C T I M E S M A G . C O M

P A G E

1 6

Interview With Capt. Allen Clark(U S Army - Retired) Â Interview Conducted By: Charles Lingerfelt, CTM Associate Publisher

CHARLES:

Capt.

Clark,

Please

Give

us

a

Brief

Summary of Your life.

south Texas in the early 1900s. My father was orphaned at age 2 due to his father's accident as an employee of a railroad. and his mother's death in the 1918 Spanish Flu

CAPT ALLEN: Raised in Texas, Arkansas, Japan, and

epidemic.

Virginia. Family genealogy has its roots in Scotland,

Great Britain in the mid-1650s. One of his ancestors was

Northern

a

Ireland,

England,

Spain,

and

Germany.

His

family

Revolutionary

entered

War

the

United

Minuteman,

one

States

was

from

in

the

Educated at Gonzaga Jesuit High School in Washington,

Revolutionary Army as a soldier at the Battle of Eutaw

D.C.,

New

Springs, South Carolina in 1781, and one was a soldier in

Hampshire, the United States Military Academy at West

Phillips

Exeter

Academy

in

Exeter,

the Revolutionary Army who was at the British Surrender

Point, NY, and Southern Methodist University in Dallas,

at Yorktown. My father retired in 1962 after twenty years

TX.

service as an Army officer, serving mainly in intelligence assignments.

CHARLES: As you know, you and I have been friends for almost 20 years. How would you characterize our

CHARLES:

relationship over the past 20 years?

deciding factor which led you to Join the Military?

CAPT through

ALLEN: the

years

Our

paths

in

patriotic,

have

crossed

frequently

You

characterize

as

a

CAPT ALLEN: My youth was spent as an Army "brat."

My parents' friends were mainly military. When I began

events and activities. Our connection with each other has

to read on my own, I was always drawn to biographies of

always

our

famous Americans, many of whom had served in our

appreciation for the gift of eternal life from our common

military forces. At age eight I was a collector of military

faith in our Lord Jesus and our love for this great country

patches, one of which was of West Point. My father

of the United States of America. It has been a pleasure for

explained to me that Army officers were trained at West

me to observe the dynamic and creative life lived by

Point. I set my goals early as a young boy to attend that

Charles Lingerfelt in all the various endeavors in which

prestigious military academy. I lived in Japan for the first

he has been involved.

two years of the Korean War and knew many soldiers,

very

close

as

we

have

and

would

political

been

religious,

What

shared

who went to fight in that conflict. I was raised in a family CHARLES:

Where

were

You

born?

Were

Your

committed to military service to our country.

parents ever involved in the U S Military?

CHARLES:

Capt.

Clark,

You

are

an

Honored

CAPT ALLEN: My birthplace was in McAllen, TX. just

Veteran of The Vietnam War. Please Share with our

a short distance from the Rio Grande River. My mother

readers anything you want to share about your time in

was a product of a family wherein she was raised by a

Vietnam.

mother, Elizabeth Nielsen, who had been a resident of Matamoros, Mexico, where her German father was a

CAPT ALLEN: My Vietnam story must begin a year

businessman. Her German heritage reached back to a

before my deployment in August 1966 to the war. My

German diplomat. Her father, Placido de la Fuente, and

wife at the time desired to have me resign my officer

his brother migrated from Asturias Province in Spain to

commission and become a civilian. I transferred from

C T I M E S M A G . C O M

the

combat

Engineer

P A G E

branch

to

the

supposedly

less

1 7

the New York Times. Subsequent to that assignment I

dangerous branch of Army Intelligence. I had been a

trained

junior aide-de-camp to a division commander at Fort

helicopter insertions into a thick jungle area for spying on

Hood

division

the enemy. My final work was at the isolated Special

commander to accompany him as his aide to the relative

Forces camp named Dak To, where I was posted to

safety

attempt to recruit local Montagnards, mountain people, to

and

of

was

an

resignation

invited

assignment

would

by

in

shortly

be

an

assistant

Korea

after

granted.

which

my

Necessarily

an

enter

young

the

Cambodian

enemy

areas

to

anti-Communists

collect

for

intelligence

two

on

our

assignment in Korea would preclude a tour in Vietnam.

enemy. It was at Dak To on June 17, 1967 that I was

Recognizing that what would become an escape from

severely wounded in an enemy mortar attack in the early

wartime service before entering civilian life, was a plague

morning before sunrise. I sustained injuries that caused

for

had

amputation of both my legs below the knee. My actions

already been serving there and several had already been

during the attack were recognized with the award of a

killed in action. My sense of personal pride compelled me

Silver Star, our military's third highest award for what is

to volunteer for service in Vietnam. It is important to note

described

that my decision was not done in consultation with my

fulfilled my duty during the attack.

my

conscience.

My

West

Point

classmates

as

"Gallantry

in

Action."

I

believe

I

just

wife. It was kept from here and created an issue of unforgiveness by her that lasted 25 years. I was trained

CHARLES: Our readers need to know that You are a

originally to be an interrogator of Prisoners of War at Nha

Graduate of The U S Military Academy at West Point.

Trang, a beautiful seacoast town in Vietnam. As it so

If

happened for my first month there were no prisoners to

Schoolers, what would it be? And Tell us about Your

interrogate.

time at West Point:

CHARLES:

Tell

us

about

Your

time

as

a

Green

Beret:

you

have some

advice

for

some

young

High

CAPT ALLEN: If a high schooler believes they would be committed to service as an officer in the U.S. Army, West Point may be an institution to which they could aspire for

CAPT ALLEN: It is important for me to clarify my

admission. It is not a place for the faint-hearted. It is

service

A

full-fledged

tough,

and

challenging

challenging. A solid academic college preparatory course

training to wear the beret and become a Green Beret.

of education is essential as well as being at least in top

Their history in many classified and arduous assignments

physical

is perhaps without equal in the annals of our military

Participation in extracurricular activities, especially with

service. The principal requirement to be assigned to a

leadership positions always proves helpful for admission.

Special Forces unit in Vietnam is that one is airborne-

I attained admission to West Point after my eleventh

qualified, which I was without all the stateside training.

grade without a high school diploma and entered the

Very soon after my arrival in Vietnam I transferred from

academy

my intelligence detachment to the Green Beret unit, the

approximately

Fifth Special Forces Group. I was immediately assigned

served me in good stead. The disciplinary system was

to a clandestine unit that was targeting Cambodia for

always very demanding. Intramural athletics were fun,

intelligence on the North Vietnamese Army troops, who

but my major endeavor my last two years was as a

were entering South Vietnam from that country to attack

member of the Academy debate team, which allowed me

our forces. Although I was not in what one would define

great pleasure to complete against students at many other

as a ground combat assignment, I experienced a very

institutions as well as to be absent many days off campus

"Green

in

Special

Beret"

Forces

endures

in

very

Vietnam. tough

grueling

and

condition,

as

the 740

if

academically

not

youngest cadets.

and

necessarily

man My

in

physically

an

my

academic

athlete.

class

of

preparation

challenging position, wherein I assumed an undercover name and assignment. My duties entailed debriefing over

CHARLES: Upon Your return from Vietnam, You

several weeks a Cambodian officer, who had defected

endured some difficult times with "Post Traumatic

from Cambodia. After I returned from the war he was

Stress Disorder." Would you mind speaking directly

killed in a celebrated case that was on the front page of

to our readers about those times?

C T I M E S M A G . C O M

P A G E

healing

from

PTS

is

CAPT ALLEN: My wounds required fifteen months of

about

hospitalization at Brooke Army Medical Center in San

website

Antonio, where my time was spent healing from my

consider going to that site, which is the product of many

wounds and being rehabilitated to use artificial legs. It

years of personal experience and discussion with many

was candidly a horrendous time of pain and medications

professionals and other warriors.

www.combatfaith.com.

contained Your

in

1 8

readers

my may

and many surgeries. The time was highlighted by my inability not to be able to adjust immediately to a life as a

CHARLES: We are losing 22 Veterans per day to

disabled

uncertainty

suicide following their return from the Battlefield!

caused me after eight months to suffer a severe case of

What advice can You give to all of us on 'How We

emotional trauma that required a fourteen week residence

May Help' these Veterans before suicide occurs?

person.

My

sadness,

anger,

and

in a closed psychiatric ward with frequent psychiatric counseling

and

heavy

medication.

The

official

CAPT ALLEN: There must be personal alarms that go

designation of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

up

when

someone

was not used until after the war for combatants. From the

exhibited in uncontrolled anger, substance abuse, frequent

beginning of history any person experiencing warfare or

job

serious situations of stress as first responders or victims

another veteran, who has "been there and done that" will

of physical or emotional abuse can be diagnosed with

have any credibility to discuss issues with a troubled

PTSD. Current descriptions of the condition attempt to

veteran. Suggest they attend sessions at Veterans Affairs

designate it in other ways than PTSD.

Vet Centers, which are located in most areas. They may

changes,

and

in

our

circles

possible

has

multiple

the

challenges

marriages.

Only

need to recognize that psychotherapy may be helpful, but CHARLES:

How

would

You

characterize

your

"methods" of how You dealt with PTS?

they must also work hard to exert maximum commitment to

avoid

regular CAPT ALLEN: For me it was after eight or so years of individual

psychotherapy

and

antidepressant

antidepressants

church

as

attendance

soon with

as a

feasible.

Bible

Suggest

Study

being

critical.

medicine

before I believe I got my "faith act" together to allow me

CHARLES: In Your first book, 'Wounded Soldier,

to forego any medicine and return to a stable life. One

Healing Warrior,' You wrote all about Your life and

day at a church service the pastor spoke about the real

your experiences. Tell us about that Book and why

war of all time is between our Lord God and Satan. They

You felt the need to write it.

are in a conflict for our very hearts and souls each and every day. I teared in that service as I instantly grasped

CAPT ALLEN: The first of three books I have written

that I had dedicated my life to the flag and my country,

is Wounded Soldier Healing Warrior A Personal Story of

but had neglected to grasp that my real fight was spiritual

a Vietnam Veteran Who Lost His Legs but Found His

in nature. I joined a couples Bible study and moved from

Soul with a Foreword by the late Ross Perot. It was my

head knowledge of Jesus to heart and soul knowledge of

opinion that the evolution of the life of a young patriot,

Jesus as Savior, who died on a cross at Calvary two

dedicated

thousand years ago so that through faith in Jesus being

horrendous

Who He said He was, I could be forgiven my sins and

others as a witness to what a person, healed by the grace

have eternal life. I decided that was for me. It has been a

of God, could accomplish once healed emotionally and

journey for my physical, emotional, and soulful healing,

proceeded on to other arenas of service to

but I have been in constant movement forward.

veterans and his community and country. The book has

to

military

wounds

in

service, a

war,

but

one

would

who

have

suffered

interest

to

his fellow

brought me many comments relative to its value in the CHARLES: Do You have any Information to share

healing process by veterans and family members.

with us about other Warriors and how they have/have not dealt with PTS?

CHARLES: Since Your recovery, You have begun a ministry for The Lord that is known all around the

CAPT ALLEN: The entirety of what I have learned

world. Tell us about Your ministry.

C T I M E S M A G . C O M

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1 9

My lay ministry is called Combat Faith Ministry. I speak

Elites. The ultimate cause of our wars goes back to that

extensively

my

previously-discussed war of all time, that between God

testimony of faith in God the Father, the Son, and the

and Satan. Combatants have become the pawns in a long-

Holy Spirit. I speak about the importance of confession of

lasting chess game. What I believe eventually will happen

sin,

is

the

at

churches

importance

of

and

youth

forgiveness

groups

and

about

the

power

of

prayer with specific examples of answered prayer in my life.

The

web

site

as

mentioned

that

our

Lord

God

will

proclaim

to

Satan,

"Checkmate."

previously

is www.combatfaith.com.

CHARLES: Please tell our readers how they may contact You for Speaking engagements?

CHARLES: Your wife has begun a ministry as well and as a terrific 'woman of God' she reaches out to

CAPT

ALLEN:

My

capture the hearts of women and Bless them. Speak to

is allenbclark@aol.com.

email

address

us about your wife's ministry?

CHARLES: Capt. Clark, We want to Thank-you for CAPT

ALLEN:

My

wife

Linda

performs

dramatic

this

Interview

with

Us

at

CTM

(Christian

Times

presentations of Women of the Bible, such as Sarah,

Magazine). If there is anything else You want to share

Esther, Ruth, Claudia, the wife of Pontius Pilate, and

with our readers, Please feel free to do so now:

Lydia in period costumes, sewed and accessorized by Linda

personally.

gathering

across

She the

has

been

country

to

a

guest

at

present.

numerous

Her

website

is http://www.voices.name. Typically her programs last 30-40 minutes.

CHARLES: Capt. Clark, You recently wrote another book that is available now. I am reading this Book now and I know that you did a terrific amount of research for the Book. Please tell us about this Book and why You felt the need to write it?

CAPT ALLEN: My second book was titled Valor in Vietnam, nineteen personalized stories about service in the

Vietnam

Foreword

War.

was

The

LTG

gentleman, Dave

who

Palmer,

wrote a

this

former

Superintendent of West Point. My study of what so may of us experienced in that war led me to study wars and warfare back through history. My studies with research in over one hundred books caused me to recognize and realize that the blood shed by combatants in wars as well as the collateral damage to civilians was a result of a myriad of sometimes seldom known or discussed true causes of the wars that were for monetary greed and acquisition

of

power.

Whatever

caused

our

different

conflicts always resulted in the shed blood of the young who fought, while others profited from the wars. My research from books as old as 150 years ago led me to spend the last four years researching and writing Soldiers' Blood and Bloodied Money Wars and the Ruling

All three of my books are available at Amazon.

C T I M E S M A G . C O M

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My Message to The Syrian Kurds

By Charles Lingerfelt, CTM Associate Publisher On 7 October 2019, the American Troops began to pull

poolside and those two families told me who they and

out of Northern Syria at the request of their Commander-

their ancestors were. I listened, and I learned. I was “all

in-chief, President Donald Trump of the United States.

ears.”

There had been a small contingency of troops there for a number of months, and the President felt that it was time

In all my travels to Kurdistan: ‘the land of The Kurds,’ I

to “bring the troops home.”

have traveled to and through the Southeastern parts of Turkey. Cizre is one of those places I’ve gone through,

At first, it disturbed me quite a bit; and it did many

including the province in which it exists. I have seen

thousands of American citizens as well. We felt that it

hundreds of Kurds who live there, and have talked with

was not a good move for the president at this time,

many of them. And I have always been

especially while we are in an election period. And then

treatment they have received from the Turks. For much of

too, it would be viewed by The Kurds around the world

the time, the Turks do not even treat the Kurds with

as

human dignity and care. It’s shameful how the Kurds are

“just

another

backstab!”

Backlash

followed

his

decision and the Troop “pullout” almost instantly and

shocked at the

treated in that part of the world.

even many Democrats came aboard to ‘gang-bang’ the president; although we Americans believe the Democrats

All of the above is presented so that you, the reader, may

don’t give him credit for ANYTHING he does!

know and understand who The Kurds really are – and from whence they have come.

As many of our readers know, I have worked among the Kurds for many years and have established very good

The Ottoman period of time has always been of keen

relationships with them around the world.

interest to me because my paternal Grandfather fought in Turkey during World War I and used to talk with us

I have traveled extensively to the Middle East since June

grandkids about his time in the U S Army. He had a few

1980

black and white photos of him and his buddies while they

-

building

relationships

with

people

in

Israel, and

were in Turkey with British troops “pulling down” the

Dubai. I have been a close friend to the Kurds for more

Ottoman empire. When Sultan Selim I, after defeating

than 32 years and I have made 24 trips(as of 2018) to

Shah Ismail I in 1514, annexed Western Armenia and

Kurdistan since 2006. All of these trips have been to

Kurdistan, he entrusted the organization of the conquered

build

the

territories to Idris, the historian, who was a Kurd of Bitlis.

people in the Middle East. By so doing, there could be a

He divided the territory into sanjaks or districts, and,

development of greater understanding of the people in

making

America. It is my opinion that there could be an ongoing,

heredity, installed the local chiefs as governors. He also

viable foreign relationship to prevent misunderstandings.

resettled the rich pastoral country between Erzurum and

It has become my pleasure to know and be friends with

Erivan, which had lain in waste since the passage of

many hundreds of people from The Middle East; and

Timur, with Kurds from the Hakkari and Bohtan districts.

thousands of Kurds around the world.

For the next few centuries, from the Peace of Amasya

Lebanon,

and

Jordan,

Syria,

establish

Iraq,

Iran,

long-lasting

Doha,

Qatar,

relationships

with

no

attempt

to

interfere

with

the

principle

of

until the first half of the 19th century, several regions of I first became friends with The Kurds in the summer of

the wide Kurdish homelands would be contested as well

1987 when I met two Kurdish families right here in North

between

Dallas. Prior to that, I had never met Kurds and I didn’t

successive Iranian dynasties (Safavids, Afsharids, Qajars)

know who The Kurds were. That day we sat by the

in the frequent Ottoman-Persian Wars.

the

Ottomans

and

the

neighboring

rival

C T I M E S M A G . C O M

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2 1

The Ottoman centralist policies in the beginning of the

Today in 2019, The Turks yet have not learned to relate

19th

to

century

aimed

to

remove

power

from

the

The

Kurds

very

well

and

The

Turks

still

feel

principalities and localities, which directly affected the

‘threatened’ and intimidated by them. The relationship is

Kurdish emirs. Bedirhan Bey was the last emir of the

not very good between the two of them at all. To put it

Cizre Bohtan Emirate after initiating an uprising in 1847

lightly, The Turks have for years maintained a HATE

against the Ottomans to protect the current structures of

against the Kurds, and really want to “wipe them out!”

the Kurdish principalities. Although his uprising is not classified

as

a

nationalist

one,

his

children

played

In 1987, when I met the two Kurdish families, which I

significant roles in the emergence and the development of

spoke about earlier, they carefully took time with me and

Kurdish nationalism through the next century.

educated

me

a

great

deal

about

the

Kurds

and

the

traditions of the Kurds. I walked away that day with a The first modern Kurdish nationalist movement emerged

great love and appreciation in my heart for the people,

in 1880 with an uprising led by a Kurdish landowner and

their traditions and culture. I have never forgotten them,

head

and never will; because it was on that day that God

of

the

Ubeydullah, outright

powerful

who

Shemdinan

demanded

independence

for

family,

political Kurds

Sheik

autonomy

as

well

as

or

‘opened my eyes’ and gave me a love and appreciation

the

for these people who have endeared themselves to me and

recognition of a Kurdistan state without interference from

my family – and me to them.

Turkish or Persian authorities. The uprising against Qajar Persia

and

the

Ottoman

Empire

was

ultimately

As we talked together, the two Kurdish families and me,

suppressed by the Ottomans and Ubeydullah, and along

they

with other notables, were exiled to Istanbul.

happening in The Middle East at that time. There was a

communicated

to

me

more

clearly

what

was

war going on then, between Iraq and Iran. To me, it was Kurdish nationalism emerged after World War I with the

just another “Middle Eastern war;” or so I thought up

dissolution of the Ottoman Empire which had historically

until that time. The Kurdish families were able to give to

successfully integrated (but not assimilated) the Kurds,

me a different perspective of what was happening.

through use of forced repression of Kurdish movements to gain independence. Revolts did occur sporadically, but

In

only in 1880 with the uprising led by Sheik Ubeydullah

conversations I have had with many hundreds of Kurds

did

since

the

Kurds

as

an

ethnic

group

or

nation

make

my

own

2006,

personal

I

believe

opinion,

there

were

based

upon

all

WMDs(Weapons

the

of

demands. Ottoman sultan Abdul Hamid responded with a

Mass Destruction) and were secretly moved into Syria

campaign of integration by co-opting prominent Kurdish

just before the beginning of The Iraq War(2003).

opponents to strengthen Ottoman power with offers of prestigious positions in his government. This strategy

If you truly want to know, without any doubt whatsoever,

appears

loyalty

IF

during

Iraq, just ask a Kurd.

to

displayed

have

by

been

the

successful

Kurdish

given

Hamidiye

the

regiments

there were “Weapons of Mass Destruction,” found in

World War I. Further yet, allow me to take you to my dear young The Kurdish ethno-nationalist movement that emerged

Kurdish friend, whose family was gassed at Halabja, but

following

she survived the attack, and You can ask her if there were

World

War

I

and

the

end

of

the

Ottoman

Empire was largely a reaction to the changes taking place in

mainstream

secularization, abhorred,

to

threatened

the

Turkey, which

the

primarily

the

strongly

centralization local

‘weapons of Mass destruction’ in Iraq.

radical

Muslim

Kurds

She was less than 10 years old at the time of the gassing

authority,

which

and only survived because she lay on the ground, in a

Kurdish

hiding position – and the wind blew the smells of the gas in an opposite direction from her. Her family perished

nationalism

that day at Halabja.

the

of

the

autonomy. And it threatened as well the rampant Turkish in

power

of

to

new

chieftains

Turkish

and

Republic,

obviously threatened to marginalize them.

which

C T I M E S M A G . C O M

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2 2

In March 2003, on the Saturday after the Wednesday of

On the one hand, I am so very proud of our troops, who

the

I

constantly have paid a terrific price for their dedication

founded in 1998, NORTH TEXAS FREEDOM RALLY,

and constant service to this nation and our Commander-

conducted a rally in downtown Dallas. It was a “Support

in-chief. Too, our troops are constantly helping other

the

people and their quest for liberty and freedom. In that

start

of

Troops

The

Iraq

Rally”

War,

and

the

was

organization

attended

by

which

over

3,000

persons who came to show support for our Troops who

search, they have always remained true!

were ‘called up’ to war in Iraq. It was attended by more than 1,500 Kurds, mostly coming from all over North

Then on the other hand, I feel this tug in my spirit: a “pull

Texas. It was a great day of support for our troops and

at the strings of my heart,” which has been loyal to my

was covered by every TV/NEWS outlet in DFW. An

sweet friends, my loving friends in the Middle East - The

AP(Associated Press) reporter came up to me afterwards

Kurds. They’ve been my friends for many years! And

to interview me and said, “Mr. Lingerfelt, are you aware

when you have friends, devoted as they are and loving as

that there were over 3.000 people here today in your

they are, you just don’t ”give up on them!”

Rally?” And I said, “No, I wasn’t aware of the number – but I knew we had many here.” He finished his interview

I have had this deep love for the Kurdish people for such

and told me he would be posting his article later in the

a long period of time that you just don’t “turn your backs

afternoon.

on your friends!“ My friends are Kurdish families, their children and youth, and the Peshmerga: Generals, officers

During the rally, it rained on us, but no one cared, and we

and all. I have worked with their Kurdish Education

all remained there standing in the rain in support of our

Department, their colleges and universities; and it is so

Troops who were enduring much more than rain in Iraq.

difficult to write and speak these words right now because my emotions have been so raw!

The Kurds know me and trust me – and I know them and Trust them as well. They are our friends in the Middle

But I awoke this morning with a new faith and vigor, a

East. They love us – They love America, and they love

new hope that God was leading our president, and that

Americans. They helped our Troops in the fight against

God was yet in control in the Middle East!

ISIS. They actually became “Our Boots on the ground” in

how you feel about the current situation, and no matter

the fight against ISIS! They are a reasonable and open-

what you think - our trust just Has to be in God and in

minded people. They are dependable people and I have

Him alone.

found

it

easily

to

build

relationships

with

the

No matter

Kurds

through the years.

We

absolutely

MUST

TRUST

HIM

with

every

circumstance and each situation! We have said for many When the modern Middle East was carved out, following

❤

years, ‘In God We Trust!’ Now, Let’s Do It!

the fall of the Ottoman Empire and mapped anew at the end

the

I am reminded of a verse of Scripture I learned many

mountainous Kurdish region was divided by the borders

of

World

War

I

by

the

British

and

French,

years ago as a teenager: “Some trust in chariots and some

of Turkey, Syria, Iraq, and Iran. The Kurds lost out on

in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our

those nation-stakes. There is no Kurdistan on the map,

God.”(Psalm 20:7)

and this is a continuing factor in Middle Eastern politics, as the Kurds have been rebelling against this status now

There is a Prophecy in The Old Testament of The Bible,

for nearly a century.

in

Isaiah

17,

which

speaks

of

‘The

Destruction

of

Damascus.’ I believe that destruction is very soon “at the What I specifically want to say to The Syrian Kurds now

door.”

That’s

why

I’m

calling

on

You,

My

Syrian

is this: “Get out of Damascus and get as far away from it

Kurdish friends, to “Get Out of Damascus, and take all of

as you possibly can!” It is for Your very own safety that I

your families with You.”

tell you this! I have mixed emotions as I view this photo below. It is a photo of our American troops departing

I believe the vengeance of The Turks and Erdogan is

from northern Syria on 7 October 2019.

about to be unleashed against Northern Syria. And when

C T I M E S M A G . C O M

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2 3

that happens, our president, President Donald Trump is NOT going to like it and he is going to react with anger – and “all Hell is going to break loose!” It is best for You, my dear friends to leave Damascus and get totally away from ‘The Hellfire.’

My love for You ALL is real and intact. I Love you with the Love of God. We are

Praying for You and Your safety! Please take care of yourselves and your families.

Remember, God Loves You and I Love You too!

Sincerely,

Mr. Charles Lingerfelt Dallas, Texas On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/charles.lingerfelt1

C T I M E S M A G . C O M

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How can we resolve the Venezuelan crisis?

Giammarco Greci citizen of Venezuela talks to CTM's Matt Snape about the Venezuelan crisis and what can be done to resolve it:

MATT:

What

is

your

position

n

the

way

Donald

Trump and his allies are trying to do in Venezuela?

decisions for the past 20 years. Maduro likes to say that everyone

else

is

sabotaging

his

government,

but

explaining your political failure through your opponents' GRECI: Without going into details, I think it’s fair to say

lack of cooperation is a bit like explaining losing a sports

Venezuelan people feel mostly positive towards Donald

match by saying your opponent was trying to sabotage

Trump’s intentions on this particular issue, and recent

your

poll results seem to reflect this. Of course, there is a

supportive

complicated question regarding the viability and long-

vision coming from chavismo, but that’s just part of what

term healthiness of this kind of geopolitical pressure, with

chavismo should have factored into their planning from

some experts favoring different approaches than what we

the start. Just as sports teams assume their opponents will

have seen so far. I believe there is room for a legitimate

try

debate here, regarding what is the best long term solution

especially

for Venezuela to recover a minimally viable political

debunked- economic vision, shouldn’t rely on everyone

consensus from which we may rebuild our institutions

being willing to foolishly jump on board an experiment

according to a democratic process. In these matters, every

which threatens the fate of millions. Maduro’s party has

case sui generis, and general strategies cannot be relied

failed in almost every possible way that an administration

upon as much as people like to believe.

can fail. It’s like watching your home team lose miserably

strategy.

to

of

keep

Sure, the

-at

them

ones

the

opposition

best-

from

with

an

highly

wining,

has

never

dubious

political

unorthodox

-and

been

economic

projects, generally

every game, every year. Eventually, people would want There are, however, certain things that need to be very

new management, new visions, and new players. Maybe

clear in this debate, and which are particularly prone to be

fans decide to boycott ticket sales until the team admits

confused

I’m

that change is necessary, that’s sort of what sanctions

of

mean to a Venezuelan citizen. Our economic crisis has

thinking

in

America’s

specifically

current

about

the

political

climate.

economic

impact

sanctions and the narratives surrounding these. While it is

been

certainly true that sanctions place economic pressure on

corner of political life for years, and things have generally

the

are

developed in line with these predictions. It would be

translated, via Maduro’s regime, into economic burdens

irresponsible to pretend that this was unforeseen, or that it

for vulnerable parts of our population, it would be a

has

terrible

decisions.

Maduro

regime,

mistake

humanitarian

to

crisis

as

and

that

think being

of

those

our

caused

pressures

economic by

and

predicted

its

cause

ad

nauseam

somewhere

by

else,

economists

in

on

someone

every

else’s

international

economic sanctions. This is the narrative that Maduro’s

MATT: What could they do better to improve the

regime pushes, and for obvious reasons. In truth, the

situation?

structural causes behind our economic collapse are quite deep, and at this point, responsibility must surely be

GRECI: What we are calling “the situation” is a series of

placed on those who have been making and executing

rather complex and interconnected problems. Some of

C T I M E S M A G . C O M

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those problems may have short term fixes, and some of

initiatives as a matter of fact. In this particular case,

them, unfortunately, will require more time. What an

Donald Trump seems to be doing the kind of thing that

overwhelming

agreed

Venezuelans had hoped someone could do. By imposing

upon, and this is perhaps the single most unifying view

sanctions on extremely corrupt politicians that had until

across our nation, is that Maduro needs to step aside.

recently been enjoying a life of extreme wealth without

There is an understanding that even if our crisis manifests

any legal repercussions, for example, Venezuelans regain

itself in economic or humanitarian terms, for example, it

some faith in justice.

majority

of

Venezuelans

have

nevertheless remains primarily a political crisis, requiring first and foremost a political solution. The solution that

MATT: How do you think Venezuela entered this

everyone seems to agree upon is, unsurprisingly, that we

crisis?

generate the conditions to hold free and fair elections.

GRECI: There are several ways to answer this question, The problem with this is that, while it sounds simple,

depending on what one considers the scope of the crisis.

holding free and fair elections in a country like Venezuela

There are flaws in our political culture that could be cited

is not that straightforward. It is impossible to contest, at

as partly responsible for this crisis that go back decades,

this stage of the game, that Maduro’s regime has violated

and there are decisions taken or not taken just a year ago

democratic principles over and over again: government

that could have helped avert some of the worst aspects of

institutions cannot act independently, dissidents are not

the crisis we are facing today.

tolerated,

media

is

threatened

and

censored,

and

opposition leaders are imprisoned, exiled, or banned from

We have to remember, however, that the people who are

running in elections. In this kind of scenario, just holding

illegitimately holding on to power today have been in

an election doesn’t quite cut it. Venezuelans want to feel

power

that our votes will be respected, and for that, we need to

structural

make sure the playing field is fair before we decide to

comparison to the problems they have generated since.

play. Part of what makes that playing field fair is Maduro

They were launched into power with widespread support,

stepping down.

had more resources at their disposition than any other

for

the

last

flaws

20

they

years.

might

Whatever

have

underlying

inherited

pale

in

government in the history of our nation, controlled every It is in this sense that Donald Trump is perceived, in

branch of government, were able to form strong regional

Venezuela, as a supportive world leader. He has added

alliances, and yet lead us to the worst crisis in the history

pressure to the Maduro regime in hopes that they are

of our nation. They can talk about sabotage all they want,

forced to move towards a solution for our political crisis.

but the truth is their incompetence as political leaders has

He has done this at times, however, by engaging in the

been

kind of rhetoric that makes some people immediately

shown to be nonsensical, their corruption exposed, their

think of the Cold War, of past cases of unwarranted

human

interventionism, etc, which in turn- and especially in

recently

America’s

Bachelet) and their capacity to inspire political change

currently

hyper-polarized

public

sphere-

tried

and

tested,

rights

makes some people believe they are standing besides the

has

historically oppressed by siding with Maduro. I do think

rejection.

by

violations

the

morphed

their

U.N.

over

macroeconomic

amply

Human

the

years

planning

documented

Rights

into

Chief,

outright

(most

Michelle

visceral

we could save ourselves a lot of trouble by cutting down on some of the polarizing rhetoric. It might make the

Any explanation about how we got here that fails to put

conversation less about an old Cold War debate, and

the Maduro regime and their actions at the center are

more about the real challenges facing the Venezuelan

intellectually

people in 2019.

serious analysis and our experience as Venezuelans.

Hard as it may be, these matters ought to be looked at on

MATT: What can the nation do to remedy its own

a case by case basis, understanding how specific political

situation?

actors are hindering or helping politically legitimate

dishonest

and

flies

in

the

face

of

both

C T I M E S M A G . C O M

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Speaking of “the nation” as a whole muddles these kinds

\MATT: What hopes do you have for the opposition if

of question a little. Our nation is made up of people in

they win power?

radically different life situations, and it would be foolish to

try

to

prescribe

a

general

solution

without

GRECI: The

opposition

is

made

up

of

very

diverse

understanding what different people are going through.

perspectives that are sometimes hard to reconcile every

Working class Venezuelans, for example, are suffering

step of the way. I’m sure anyone familiar with opposition

the most. They have spent years watching their salaries

dynamics would admit that it has been a long and hard

thin out through inflation, their savings vanish, public

process

services collapsing, and their families migrating in hopes

between different groups that you see today. I think this

of finding a better future. What these Venezuelans can

happens for a very good reason, and it’s that regardless of

and are doing to help the nation is survival, because

who you support, there is one thing that currently unites

survival,

almost every Venezuelan on earth: the need to hold free

in

today’s

Venezuela,

is

almost

a

form

of

resistance.

to

get

to

the

kind

of

unity

and

cooperation

and fair elections and to turn the page on this chapter of our

history.

Of

course,

there

is

a

great

deal

of

well

Upper class Venezuelans have largely left and found

developed consensus regarding what would happen if the

better

opposition

opportunities

elsewhere,

even

if

most

remain

wins

who have often had the privileged opportunity to receive

humanitarian crisis head on and alleviate the very harsh

high quality education and training across various fields,

conditions imposed on the vast majority of Venezuelans,

it

and (2) lay the foundations for a medium term economic

be

far

preferable

to

be

working

in

the

broad

two

strokes,

agrees

programs

on

In

everyone

about

focus

begin.

but

members that are here. For most of these Venezuelans,

would

to

elections,

somewhat tied to Venezuela through friends and family

development of our own economy, living in the spaces

where

those

objectives:

(1)

government tackle

the

recovery.

they grew up in, and enjoying the proximity of friends and family. If the right conditions were to be created,

MATT: Do you think Western interventionism helps

there is a large potential for some of these Venezuelans to

matters in South America?

come

back

and

participate

in

the

rebuilding

of

our

productive capabilities.

First of all I would like to point to this interesting way of phrasing the question, for it supposes that South America

In the short term, however, it is important for people

is not part of the western world. This is not the time for

living in Venezuela to resist the normalization of the

such a debate, but I think it is important to keep in mind

crisis. Maduro’s regime has only one objective: to stay in

that these narratives of west vs not-west might not apply

power at all costs, and the more we get used to situations

to

South

America

as

much

as

some

people

assume.

that would have been unfathomable just a few years ago,

Regarding interventionism, here again I would try to

the easier it is for the crony elite to tighten their grip on

resist the urge to speak in generalities. It is not easy to

power. One of the most important ways in which we can

draw the line between cooperation and interventionism,

all fight against this is to help keep our social circles

especially in complicated situations such as ours. In order

accurately

and

to conceive of an action as an unwanted intervention you

propaganda passing as information are an essential part of

need have a way of interpreting the will of the people. If

how Maduro’s government tries to keep people confused

the people don’t want it, then it’s a violation of national

and demobilized. We can resist these tactics together by

sovereignty

being careful about what we share with others and by

country

supporting local, independent journalists who risk their

government

lives

by

informed

simply

and

be

made

officials.

called

up In

of a

an

its

intervention.

ruling

elites

functioning

But

and

a its

democracy,

trying to rebuild our democracy, we should begin by

legitimacy. It is because a government embodies the will

rebuilding

of its people that they have authority over matter of

in

well

not

can

the common interests of all citizens: therein lies their

sphere

A

is

and

government bodies are supposed to accurately represent

public

jobs.

news

informed

healthy

their

Fake

population is a prerequisite for democracy, and if we are

a

doing

interested.

which

information is what’s guiding our social debates.

accurate

national sovereignty. This authority lies ultimately on the

C T I M E S M A G . C O M

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people who elect them, and it is only temporarily delegated to a political party in government. In Venezuela, where polling data has shown for years that an overwhelming majority of the population reject Maduro as their president, where the executive power has not been legitimized through free and fair elections, where judicial power acts in clear subordination to the usurpers of executive power, can we say that Maduro’s circle acts in the interest of national sovereignty? Is it indeed an act of intervention to help the majority of the population achieve their expressed desire to hold free and fair presidential elections? This is why I don’t like to talk about interventionism in general, as if there were a quick and easy way to judge a political situation. People tend to look for quick formulas: intervention = bad. In reality, our world has become so interconnected and complex that speaking of interventionism tout court is not very useful at all.

MATT: Who would you support to replace Venezuela's current President?

I support what has emerged as the most viable alternative for Venezuela at this juncture: interim president Juan GuaidĂł.

The political project that has organized around him has the best chance of leading Venezuela to free and fair elections for a healthy political transition.

AFP/GETTY

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It’s High Time for Change in The Democrat Party Pastor David Colbert Columnist & News Anchor person, CTM News Channel

I have watched for many years as the Democratic Party has broken their promises to their constituents. It is high time for them to show integrity in leading this nation.

they do nothing to take the focus off the Republican Party and get the American public looking at them again. They get an opportunity to make a difference and they spend it on seeking to impeach the sitting Republican President.

I have some advice for the Democratic Party, go after the ones whose hearts you really want; the American people.

You must win the hearts of the American people. Focus on us before it is too late for you. If I want to steal a girl’s I

lure

her

with

something

that

will

gain

always vote for the one who wants to take care of me and put money in my pocket; not tax me and my family to death.

They whine and complain about the Republican Party, yet

heart,

observation. I am talking about human nature. I will

her

affections.

President Trump knows how to wine and dine the people.

He gets the dates as you see with his huge rallies. Just an

I am a Conservative Republican.

The Democratic Party once again are attempting a Coup on President Trump and his Administration. We call it a coup because these impeachment articles have no basis in fact. The Democrats have once again found a way to circumvent the activities of President Trump’s Amazing Administration.

When Democratic President Obama could not get his way,

he

abused

the

Executive

Order

to

force

things

through. In my opinion President Trump should fight back, but that would be illegal like what the Democratic Party has been doing in trying to disguise a coup and call it Impeachment.

C T I M E S M A G . C O M

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I am excited to see despite all the hoopla the Dems are

your usual quote unquote, Politician. He is a whole new

trying to dig up. President Trump is doing well in the

animal.

Presidential Election bid. Joe Biden is losing ground in

President Trump. He is one of the people and that is why

the polls I have also heard. President Trump is doing a

he is different.

I

have

never

known

anyone

in

office

like

great job with our government. The present spin is Trying to distract the American people from the good

The people we see coming into office these days are

work President Trump is doing.

trained

to

jump

through

hoops

just

like

every

other

politician before them. President Trump on the other hand Newsweek says Trump approval rating climbs to 2019

is a savvy businessman who knows what he wants and

record in new survey on October 3rd to 49% of registered

blazes a trail to it.

voters. They also say support for Pres. Trump Amid an accelerating

impeachment

inquiry

and

unraveling

We have long needed a President of this type to take us

domestic crises has reached its highest level this year

off the consumer train and get us back onto the producer

according to Hill-Harris tracking poll.

track. I want to share a humorous note on President Trump. A linguistics professor from Columbia University

These are quotes from Ivanka Trump on Fox Business

said President Trump always speaks in a casual way, the

Network.

professor says his position should require. I say great I

"I

think

everything's

a

question

of

priorities,"

Ivanka

Trump said in an exclusive

interview with Fox Business Network Friday.

"We have our priorities in the White House," she continued. "We're fighting every day for the American worker, we're fighting every day to improve the quality of life for every single person in this country and we're delivering in that fight and on that promise.

get tired of listening to stuffed shirts trying to impress the American people. President Trump is happy being one of the people of America. God bless President Trump.

It

makes

me

laugh

to

see

the

Democratic

Party

still

promising the same old same old things. They are beating the education horse again and trying to pass more gun control legislation. I have a question for the Dems, why is it that we only hear about gun control in the liberal media when a mass shooting occurs? I will answer that question for you. It is because we don’t really need it. The right to

We have a White House that is finally working, and the Democrats want to take it Away from the American people. You must be blind not to see the good President Trump is doing.

keep

and

bear

arms

is

as

old

as

our

country’s

Constitution.

The real problem is illegal gun sales, and an internet run amuck. We need to find a way to curb illegal gun sales.

It is one thing to fight fair and lose gracefully, but the Democrat Party have proven, time and time again that they are sore losers.

We need to increase our domestic intelligence in that area.

I noticed that the Democratic candidates are still focusing

Nancy Pelosi runs the majority leadership like the Boss Baby cartoon, using anything she can to make a point regardless if it be true or false.

on what they will do when they get into office. The problem

is

they

are

saying

myself”

or,

like

the

competition

Harris

I am going to speak a little on Democratic campaign promises made by politicians. Most Politicians will promise all kinds of things when they are running for office both Democrat and Republican alike. The problem they see with President Trump he is not

and

Joe

Biden.

Joe

things

Biden

like

“I

between is

will

do

Kamala

promising

it D.

triple

funding under Title 1- to low income area schools. This is socialism plain and simple, the government will do it. I believe these kinds of things should be handled on the State Government Level.

C T I M E S M A G . C O M

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Harris on the other hand wants to give educators both Federal and State Monies to the tune of an average raise of $13,500 for Teachers per year. I believe that Teachers should be given raises on merit just like everyone else. I believe simply that some Teachers are being paid for just teaching a test.

We need to start preparing children for the real world in the beginning. We need to teach them about finances, the markets and investing. What is the process in general for purchasing a home? These things are very useful. There are millions of students going out into the world unprepared for real life.

I want to see our Republican Party draw up legislation along these lines and see if the Dems really care about real education issues.

In the race for the power of the executive order Elizabeth is catching up to Joe, not that it matters, because they will lose in 2020. I personally do not like Elizabeth Warren. She is full of herself, and we will not hear about her again after the 2020 Elections.

Well, that is part of my take on the news.

This is David Colbert saying God Bless America and the World

C T I M E S M A G . C O M

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Regressive Rhode Island

By Paul McCabe

Gaspee. marked

This the

event

first

and

acts

of

others

in

violent

Narragansett

uprising

Bay

against

the

British crown's authority in America. On May 4, 1776 Rhode Island was the first of the thirteen colonies to declare its absolute independence from England.

Two and a half centuries later, the outlook is much less glorious. After decades of control by the D party there is a long record of mismanagement, failure, and corruption.

The world’s most famous chicken and official state bird: the Rhode Island Red

In one of the saddest examples the local Pawtucket Red Sox, the Triple-A affiliate team for the Boston Red Sox,

After recent articles discussing the disastrously-run blue

announced last year that it was moving across the state

states of New York and California, my attention now

line to Worcester. This happened after years of botched

turns to my home state of Rhode Island and Providence

negotiations

Plantations. It is the smallest state but has the longest

stadium and incentives. In 1981, the Paw Sox played in

name.

and

Texas

Republican

is

221

times

Presidential

larger.

candidate

The

won

last

the

time

state

a

was

won

history,

with

the

a

the

longest

33-inning

state

government

game

affair

in

about

professional

against

the

a

new

baseball

Rochester

Red

1972. (It was Nixon’s landslide against McGovern when

Wings. But now it’s bye-bye baseball, a RI hometown

the President took 49 states.)

feature for fifty years.

This little portion of America has a long and glorious

Since

history. A Protestant minister in 1636 rebelled against

Raimondo, plagued by allegations of financial misdeeds

Puritan orthodoxy in the new Massachusetts Bay colony.

in the state pension fund, at Point Judith Capital where

Soon he walked 30 miles with his flock and found a

she was on the board, at the Ocean State Investment Pool,

felicitous

and at investment company Oaktree.

spot

where

two

rivers

joined.

There

Roger

2015

the

first

female

Governor

has

been

G.

Williams said “It is Providence which has brought us here.”

Thus

right

from

the

start

RI

was

a

center

of

In

June

2019

she

succeeded

in

passing

one

of

the

religious tolerance. Williams established the first Baptist

country’s most radical abortion laws. This is the most

church

Catholic state in the country, whose immigrants came

on

the

continent.

His

principles

concerning

separation of church and state were enshrined in the US Constitution

more

than

a

century

after

his

death.

from

Italy,

Providence

Ireland, Bishop

Portugal, Thomas

France, Tobin

and

called

Poland. the

bill's

America’s first synagogue was established at Newport in

passage "profoundly disappointing, a very dark day in the

1763 and still functions there.

history of our state." Planned Parenthood applauded the new

law.

Raimondo

eagerly

signed

the

bill

within

the

minutes of approval by state legislators and claimed it

Continental Army, Nathanael Greene, was a native son

was “about protecting and providing health care.” Both

whose statues stand in Washington DC, Savannah GA,

the Senate and House leaders voted against the new law.

George

Washington’s

deputy

commander

of

Greensboro NC, and of course Providence. In 1772, more than a year before the Boston Tea Party, Rhode Islanders

Her predecessor L. Chafee got his start in politics when

attacked and burned a British navy ship called HMS

the D governor appointed him to the Senate seat vacated

C T I M E S M A G . C O M

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by his well-known father, who died in office in 1999.

(RICO), normally used to indict members of organized

Since

crime.

then

he

has

changed

from

Republican

to

He

favors

the

radical

“green

new

deal,”

Independent to Democrat to Libertarian. Chafee briefly

Obamacare, abortion, and a commission to “uncover the

ran for President in 2016 before vanishing from view.

war crimes” of the Bush administration. In September 2019 he published another bizarre op-ed in the same

His

Through

leftist newspaper with the ludicrous title “The Supreme

Peace”. During TV debates he emphasized the adoption

oddball

Court Has Become Just Another Arm of the GOP.” He

of the metric system. He voted against funding the war in

seems too young to be senile. So the explanation must lie

Iraq

elsewhere: a D driven to ridiculous levels of partisanship

in

platform

2003

and

was

called

endorsed

“Prosperity

Obama

in

2008.

Local

reporters called him “Governor Gump” and “Governor

by

Trump

Derangement

Syndrome

Grinch”. Before entering politics he trained in Montana

many in the nation’s capital.)

(which

afflicts

so

and pursued a career as a farrier. “I think I put shoes on 5,000 horses,” he said. (No, I am not making this up.)

My

own

Congressman

1995-2011

used

to

be

Patrick

Kennedy, son of the notorious Teddy Kennedy (D-Mass.)

The senior Senator now is J. Reed, in office since 1997

I always voted for that blithering nitwit for sentimental

and in the House before that since 1991. Despite years in

reasons: once upon a time I worked for his uncle Bobby.

the US Army, he now takes leftist positions on issues like

Eventually he left Congress following a scandal in 2006

abortion,

and

where he crashed his car at 2:45 am on Capitol Hill after

unionization,

unemployment

funding,

increased gun

Medicare

and

he had taken sleeping pills. Two days later Kennedy got a

illegal immigration. Like his colleague Chafee he voted

control,

energy

use,

show of support when the RI Democratic Party officially

against funds for the invasion of Iraq. In 2010, he turned

endorsed

down Obama’s offer to become the Secretary of Defense.

program at the fancy and expensive Mayo Clinic. He

Apparently Obama sought a dove like Reed to head up

went to rehab again in 2009 and did not run in 2010.

him.

Then

he

entered

a

drug

rehabilitation

the huge Defense Department. In 2014, Reed won reelection 71% to 29%.

He must run again next year or he

can retire at age 71.

The junior Senator S. White House has a name that sounds like it is from a political satire but it isn’t. To enter the Senate he defeated “Governor Gump” Chafee in 2006

by

national

27,000 TV

Kavanagh’s

votes.

White

year

during

last

nomination

to

House the

the

got

himself

hearings

Supreme

on

on

Brett

Court.

As

thousands of his voters watched, he used his time to discuss school

flatulence yearbook

with he

Judge

closely

Kavanagh,

examined

whose

and

high

excoriated.

This jaw-dropping drama enthralled none who saw it.

White House embarrassed himself, the Senate, and his home state by such weird questions and behavior. Shame

This vacancy allowed the ex-mayor of Providence, D. Cicilline, to succeed Kennedy in the 1st district seat. The new

Congressman

had

become

mayor

following

the

arrest and conviction of the colorful and criminal mayor

on him.

V. “Buddy” Cianci on a racketeering conspiracy charge In 2007 the National Journal ranked him as the 2nd most left-leaning senator. Since then he has veered further left, like

much

of

the

Washington

leadership

Post

of

the

editorial

D

party. in

In

a

2015,

WhiteHouse advocated prosecution of members of the energy

industry

under

the

Corrupt Organizations Act

Racketeer

Influenced

and

in 2002. Eight others also were convicted then on various Federal charges. Originally Cianci had run claiming to be the “Anti-Corruption Candidate” after more than 30 years of corrupt Irish mayors. Of course in RI both Italians and Irish are leaders of the D party. While Cicilline was still mayor in 2008, his brother John pled guilty to Federal charges of conspiracy, obstruction of justice, and making

C T I M E S M A G . C O M

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false statements. He went to prison. John was indicted along with J. Bevilaqua Jr., son of the infamous ex-Judge.

In 2011, Providence City Council Finance Chairman John Igliozzi accused the previous mayor of raiding the city’s cash reserves without the approval of the city council. He said Cicilline hid the scope of the city’s fiscal woes through “illusory revenues, borrowing, and other tricks.”

But

Mayor

Congress

Cicilline

in

already

Washington.

had

Others

escaped were

to

stuck

the

US

with

the

municipal financial wreck he left behind.

jerk “populist-leaning liberal”. With no background in foreign affairs, he loudly criticized President Trump’s historic meeting with the North Korean Kim and opposed John Bolton as National Security Adviser. (Under the Constitution the House has nothing to do with either of these

matters.)

supports

He

is

“sanctuary”

a

strong

cities,

anti-gun

advocate

government

funding

and of

abortions, and open borders.

a

motley

collection

of

about

100

whiny

left

wingers who regularly howl their unrealistic proposals about raising taxes, climate change, abolishing the Patriot Act, increasing welfare payments, etc., ad nauseum. In fact the group is made up of retromingents disguised as progressives.

Local

TV

station

WPRI

reported

that

“On

policy,

as well as a relentless and caustic critic of President Trump.” His other D leadership positions include co-chair the

LGBT

Equality

Caucus

and

vice-chair

of

the

House Gun Violence Task Force. He has been a strident and unreasonable voice calling for impeachment of the President. In September 2019 he criticized the President’s “obstruction of justice, abuses of power, and corruption” and insisted that his “voters care” about this.

since 1793 that RI would have just a single seat in the House of Representatives. Good job, Democrats!

“Ye

are

a

factious

crew,

and

enemies

to

all

good

government. . . Ye are grown intolerably odious to the whole nation. You were deputed here by the people to get grievances redressed, are yourselves become the greatest grievance. . . Go, get you out! Make haste! . . .

-- Oliver Cromwell to the

Rump Parliament in London, 1653

To be fair, corruption in the state did not start with the D party. For decades the regional boss of the New England mafia

was

Rhode

Islander

R.

Patriarca,

whose

reach

covered all six states. A real-life Godfather, he had a wide influence in organized crime nationally too. In 1970 he was convicted of conspiracy to murder and sentenced to 10 years. Patriarca continued to run his “family” while in

My home state also distinguished itself in another way. In 1986 the Chief Justice of the state Supreme Court J. Bevilaqua resigned under pressure during impeachment proceedings. Numerous problems centered on his long association with “Nicky” Bianco, successor to Ray “The Man” Patriarca as crime boss, and with other organized

representation

in

Congress

following

in the state House of Representatives where he was a lifelong member of the D party. No doubt Rhode Island gets Olympic gold in graft, fraud, payoffs, and extortion.

No

other

state

can

challenge

this

level

of

official

corruption.

What is the outlook for the future of this little state of about a million people? A survey in August this year by the Princeton Review ranked the University of RI as the 3rd from the top nationally in terms of marijuana use by students and faculty. A recent CBS News story said that

Like other highly-taxed blue states, RI is in danger of losing

representative instead of two. It would be the first time

crime figures. Judge Bevilaqua rose in politics as a leader

Cicilline has carved out a reputation as a leader on the left

of

is coming up fast. Voters may have to elect a single U.S.

prison.

He is the Vice Chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus,

will decline too, from four to three. The election of 2022

In the name of God, go!”

Cicilline has established himself in Congress as a knee-

3 3

the

2020

census. Recent press reports indicate that it is likely that RI will lose one House seat due to declining population.

Now it ranks 44th in population and the numbers are trending down. In that case its number of electoral votes

RI has among the highest consumption rates of cannabis (more than 14% of the population). Governor Raimondo (D) will call for legalization in her next budget proposal, according to the local Providence Journal. Moreover, the National Institute of Drug Abuse reported on its website that in 2017 RI had almost double the national rate of opioid-involved overdose deaths (mainly due to fentanyl).

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In July this year, CNBC released its annual ranking list called Top States for Business. RI was last (50th) for both business climate and infrastructure.

In the category of economy, it was ranked at 48. These rock-bottom numbers

represent a new low achieved after several decades of D control.

Taxpayers and voters are fleeing the messes created by the job-killing D party and its endless congeries of tax-and-spend policies. The economy and the population are shrinking. But many of those staying behind will be too intoxicated to notice the state sinking into debt, drug use, financial problems, and unemployment. On the lovely state flag the optimistic motto says HOPE. But today in 2019 the place, badly led by dozens of Ds, seems to be declining deeper into a dreary quagmire. Reluctantly I am reminded of the stark and somber images in Dante’s famous Purgatorio.

Gun Control

C T I M E S M A G . C O M

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By Chris Grahn Howard

Yet another mass shooting in America. A sad and troubling event. I am a Christian Conservative and if you have read any of my previous articles you already know that. My heart breaks for the families and students who have gone through this tragic event. Such a waste of our youth and the burdens that will follow for the families and friends. Despite the ridicule and mocking from liberals. I do pray for those involved, all of them. The real question remains, what can be done to prevent these types of tragedies from happening in the future? Gun Control: Part One

Here we go again…again. I am angry, frustrated and most

response to something beyond one’s control. Killing in a

of all saddened. Why is this happening? Are guns the

premeditated manner is not just a random thought, it is

issue? This is still best country to live in. Opportunities

the result of many thoughts that have accumulated over

are

What

time. No matter if there is one planned victim or many.

causes the anger, despair and lack of moral strength?

abounding

These thoughts that can become an act are the result of

What has been lost in our culture? How is it that our

mental illness and/or missing a moral compass. I believe

society has devolved into this present reality? Have we as

that in many cases there is a matter of the missing moral

a

compass leading to the mental illness.

country

meaningful

everywhere

reached gun

a

and

tipping

control?

Or

for

everyone.

point? is

this

Is

it

about

time

for

something

deeper? While there are many popular theories, music,

The absence of moral instruction, training and faith leads

video games, movies as influencers. I dare say it really

to the path that travels to a mass shooting. When, we, the

comes down to two things. God, or the lack of him and

collective…we

the destruction of the family.

shooting?” Ask, what has led to the moral decay of our

ask,

“what

can

we

do

about

these

society? I am not talking about the usual suspects. No, I have an idea... If banning works.... Let’s ban theft,

what I am referring to is the bigger decay. The decay that

let's ban bigotry, let's ban violence, let’s ban murder,

has

and let’s ban rape, incest, abuse…. If only banning

fatherless. I am referring to the decay that has stated there

worked! How about we admit that it is all a head and

is no objective Truth. That there is not one absolute

heart problem? How about looking to the root causes of

Truth.

destroyed

families.

Many

of

these

killers

were

sin and defilement? The problem with banning the tools of

sin.

One of my favorite movie quotes – “The greatest trick the

America banned alcohol through the Volstead Act. We

sin

is

that

Devil ever played, was convincing people that he did not

all know how well that worked out. That act of banning

exist.” My friends, Evil exists and has an author. Evil has

alcohol

a name. To deny that is to be trapped in the abyss of

created

it

never

more

addresses

criminals

the

and

desire

more

to

criminal

empires. Gun Control: Part One

human

secularists.

An

abyss

with

no

hope

beyond

yourself, no faith beyond yourself and no standard on The essence of Gun control is a matter of external control

which to stand beyond yourself. That philosophy will lead

versus internal control. The desire to kill, other than for

to tyranny and despair every time.

self-preservation, is an internal thought, an irrational

C T I M E S M A G . C O M

P A G E 3 6

A despair that leads to the thoughts mentioned above. Internal. The problem here is that those who clamor for gun control or even gun elimination have only one option…to control the external tools that a very few mentally ill people want to use. Why the one option? Because those same people advocate for policies that have destroyed families, destroyed morality and have attempted to negate God have no desire to discuss the internal. After all, it is what is in the hear and mind that control actions. Despite advances in so many ways; we have an increasingly broken society, broken hearts and minds…most of all broken souls.

Broken souls lead to what ails our society, our country and our world. Yes, we are all sinners and fall short of the glory of God almighty. Yes, we can all do better. There is a freedom in knowing that one is not perfect, not sinless and in need of redemption. Counter intuitive I know, but it is real. Salvation comes first from knowing that you can be saved and by what means.

The liberals who want to take away guns have a growing dilemma. I would like to site an ongoing case right here in the St. Louis region. Just recently, a 23-year-old man was killed by police after he allegedly drew a weapon. He was seen in a shopping mall with a pistol with an extended clip. He was approached and fled, prompting a chase and a call to police.

Turns out this individual was a felon.

So, a felon carrying a weapon in a shopping mall was chased and drew on an officer. I county three crimes/violations of existing gun laws. How many more gun laws would have stopped this young man from carrying a weapon? With the threats of mass shootings and continued gang/drug violence with accidental victims…Why are we upset about this death? Right now, there have been protests at the mall over this young man’s death. At the very same time there are protests to take guns off the streets, from everybody even the law-abiding ones. Honestly, they can’t really expect to have it both ways?????? Can they?!

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Is Lindsey Graham about to rescue Trump’s Syrian policy?

By Matt Snape, Columnist CTM

Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) questions U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen during a hearing with the Senate Judiciary Committee on "Oversight of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security" on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., January 16, 2018.

Reuters/Joshua Roberts

President Trump’s decision to withdraw US troops from

military is now partnering with Assad in a move which

Syria has been met with a mixed reception as political

will likely please Moscow and Tehran. Both Russia and

figures on both sides of the spectrum have condemned his

Iran are two of the Syrian President’s most loyal allies

choice. US Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell,

and without American support, there is little the Kurds

who

can do to resist Damascus’s military grip.

has

been

administration, Carolina

very joined

Senator

supportive fellow

South The SDF is regarded by Ankara as a terrorist group. Since Trump made his choice to quit supporting the Kurds, they

Hillary Clinton, also could not resist referring to Trump’s

are

withdrawal

because they face two scenarios: either be wiped out by

troops

from

in

Trump

like

the

US

Graham

the

President’s decision. His former 2016 Democrat rival,

of

Lindsey

towards

Republicans

criticizing

northern

Syria

as

a

“sickening betrayal” of America’s allies.

relying

American

troops

support

instead.

This

is

Middle

whose

influence

over

the

Middle

East

is

increasing: Russia. The Turkish President has vowed to

country, Turkey has unleashed a military offensive into

finish what he started, but because of the agreement the

northeastern Syria. Since 9 October, the operation has

SDF has reached with the Putin-friendly Assad regime,

displaced at least 130,000 people. Chloe Cornish et al of

Damascus

the Financial Times argued that the biggest winner of the

against

President’s decision so far has been Syrian President

Kurdish

Bashar

preserved. This has the potential of shattering Erdogan’s

The

the

for

Eastern

al-Assad.

vacated

Moscow

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan or depend upon another nation

After

on

Kurdish-dominated

Syrian

Democratic Forces (SDF) being targeted by Turkey’s

would

only

defend

the

north-east

Turkey’s

advance

into

Syria

control.

Kurdish

institutions

rather would

region

than also

plans of using north-east Syria to resettle refugees.

end be

C T I M E S M A G . C O M

P A G E 3 5

Trump stressed repeatedly that US troops were not in the region, but on 11 October reports emerged of armed forces coming under fire. This also contradicts what US Defense Secretary Mark Esper said about all troops being withdrawn from Syria. Despite all the criticism he has received from opponents, it seems like the President is hopeful that he can achieve a peaceful settlement to this conflict. This is consistent with the Republican’s foreign policy approach since he took office.

The President has not abandoned Syria and he is resorting to using sanctions to cripple Turkey’s economy to bring them to the negotiating table. Steel tariffs would be increased to 50 per cent and discussions over a $100 billion trade deal would be delayed. This is an approach both the Republicans and the Democrats have encouraged Trump to adopt and he has listened to them to a certain extent.

Although the President has vowed to destroy Turkey’s economy in response to their Syrian invasion, the sanctions he has imposed on Ankara so far have been too timid. They target the ministers of defense, energy and interior. Erdogan can use these sanctions as a means to strengthen his support and blame Turkey’s economic woes on Trump. The Graham-Van Hollen Bill, being proposed by Senators Graham and Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) would issue more effective sanctions against the Turkish President and the Vice President on top of the officials already targeted by Trump’s sanctions. It will also prohibit all military transactions with Ankara and impose visa restrictions.

Trump’s foreign policy approach has shattered the US’s image abroad. The Kurds have fought alongside American forces in defeating ISIS and now they have been left vulnerable to Erdogan’s troops. The President may be trying to end “pointless wars” to appeal to his base, but if his strategy is to replace conflict with sanctions, they need to be tougher.

Now he must depend upon Graham to rescue his foreign policy, and with bipartisan support for the Republican’s bill in both Houses of Congress, the South Carolina Senator may just do that.

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Is the Democrats’ strategy to defeat Trump falling apart?

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi gestures while speaking during a news conference on Capitol Hill on Thursday, Oct. 17, 2019. (Photo: Pablo Martinez Monsivais, AP)

Once

considered

Democratic

to

be

the

nomination,

favorite

to

win

2020

the

President

for

asking

the

Ukrainian

Biden’s son, Hunter, have tarnished his campaign. His

now appears that impeachment might be the only solution

poll

for the Democrats to remove a president they despise to

asked former

the

Ukrainian

vice

announced

look

President

Trump

had

to

investigate

the

its

top

Government

president’s major

son

after

corruption

Joe was once regarded as the candidate who could beat Trump. He was Obama’s former vice president and his

Fifteen

those

review

the

former boss is considered to be one of the US’s most popular leaders. Obama’s approval average is 47.9 per

company’s

cent. But Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren have both

in

involve

2014

the

past

Ukrainian gas firm Burisma. Hunter was appointed to the board

cases

of

ensure that they win the 2020 general election.

prosecutor

investigations that had either been cancelled or split up. of

a

weary.

against

impeach

Government to conduct this investigation into Hunter. It

now

allegations

the

Joe

numbers

the

whilst

his

founder

father

of

was

still

Obama’s number two.

out-raised him in the third quarter by $10 million. With Sanders recovering from a heart attack, Warren may gain

The New York Times believes that Joe is torn between

support

his instinct to protect his family from what he believes to

thereby preventing the Vermont senator from splitting the

be an unjustified attack against his character to presenting

left-wing vote. This means Warren’s chances of clinching

himself

the 2020 Democratic nomination from the former vice

as

politically

decisive.

His

speech

in

Reno,

Nevada, which launched a scathing attack at the way the Trump

administration

behaved

on

this

issue,

from

many

progressives

in

the

Democrats,

president have increased.

was

overshadowed by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s threat to

The Democrats are in trouble. Veteran GOP strategist

C T I M E S M A G . C O M

P A G E 3 5

Colin Reed believes Warren should not be underestimated. But one Democrat strategist said her policies could alienate many marginal voters she needs to win, rather like Michael Dukakis did in 1988. The Hill produced a poll showing every other Democratic candidate beat Trump in a popularity poll except Warren. Compared to Biden, this leads many to doubt that she could defeat the President in an election. With impeachment emerging as Pelosi’s last resort to unseat their Republican rival, it also appears unlikely that this strategy will work too.

The White House Counsel’s Office is preparing to formally object to the Democrats’ impeachment inquiry on Friday, saying it will not cooperate with the probe because it was launched without a vote of the House of Representatives. They will send a letter to Pelosi objecting to the form of the impeachment investigation. But when Richard Nixon and Bill Clinton were both threatened with impeachment, the House voted before an inquiry was conducted, despite House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy arguing the US Constitution does not state a vote is required before an impeachment inquiry.

Impeachment is likely to burst into a lengthy legal battle between the Oval Office and the Democrats, which The Daily Telegraph argues could only animate the President’s supporters ahead of the 2020 election. Pelosi has sought to avoid a vote on the impeachment probe because it would force moderate House Democrats to make a politically risky move.

Courts have generally required congressional oversight requests to demonstrate a legitimate legislative purpose into impeachment requests.

Pelosi

is

playing

a

dangerous

game.

During

the

2006

mid-term

elections,

she

threatened

President

Bush

with

impeachment over the 2003 Iraq War, and that strategy quickly collapsed. She also failed to impeach Trump over allegations of Russian collusion in 2016. Rudy Giuliani, the President’s attorney, will argue that Trump was investigating political corruption in Ukraine. If the White House wins this legal argument, it could humiliate Pelosi further.

The New York Times‘ Christopher Buskirk joked that so far, Trump is winning the Democratic debates. He could be right. Every candidate has significant flaws that mean they do not present a credible threat to the President, and impeachment looks increasingly unlikely every day.

By Matt Snape Columnist CTM