SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) listened to testimony from former Secretary of State Madeline Albright during a hearing before the House Foreign Affairs Committee on February 27, 2019. (Photo: Screesnhot/C-SPAN)
WATCH: Democrat Ilhan Omar Questions Madeline Albright on Use of Sanctions and Failures of US Military Intervention
"As someone who understands the horrors of war firsthand," noted Minnesota Democrat, "I worry when we fail to consider the human toll of war and our moral responsibility to the people of these countries."
Feb 27, 2019
While much of the country was watching the testimony of Michael Cohen on Wednesday, Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) was questioning former Secretary of State Madeline Albright in a separate, largely vacant hearing room about sanctions and the pitfalls of past U.S. military interventions.
"Some scholars and practitioners of foreign policy have questioned whether sanctions are effective in changing the behavior of certain governments," Omar said, pointing out that economic sanctions can have dire effects on the innocent populations of targeted countries.
Albright, who once infamously told 60 Minutes reporter Lesley Stahl that the deaths of half-a-million Iraqi children due to sanctions were "worth it" to get rid of then-Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, said sanctions still have a role to play in American foreign policy.
Sanctions should be understood as a foreign policy tactic between diplomacy and force, explained Albright.
"We have learned a lot about sanctions," said Albright. "We learned that comprehensive sanctions, which we did in Iraq, hurt the people, and we began to look at targeted or smart sanctions."
Omar and Albright's exchange came during a hearing (pdf) in the House Foreign Affairs Committee Wednesday entitled "The Trump Administration's Foreign Policy: A Mid-Term Assessment." Albright was on hand to discuss the administration's priorities and didn't hold back in her assessment of the first two years of the Trump doctrine.
"The administration's record is marked by confusion, inconsistency, a lack of diplomacy, and, in some cases, a complete abdication of responsibility," Albright said in her testimony, adding that the State Department's funding and staffing woes were adding to a loss of U.S. standing in the world.
Newly-elected to the House, Omar joined The Intercept's Medhi Hassan this week to discuss her first two months in office. Listen to the podcast here.
Watch the full exchange between Omar and Albright below:
We are at a crossroads
This country and this world are at a monumental crossroads. US voters have an opportunity to beat back the forces of fascism and confront the billionaires who are rigging the economy, our media system, and our democracy, making it increasingly impossible for ordinary people to get by. We’re not just talking about the election. We’re talking about what must be done once these fascist elements are vanquished from power. We need a bolder set of solutions than what either major party has so far been willing to offer and a working-class movement ready to fight like hell for it. Trump didn't emerge from nowhere. The conditions that fueled MAGA authoritarianism were created by decades of radical neoliberal economic policies and a corrupt political system dominated by corporate interests. They slashed taxes on the super-rich, promising that the benefits would trickle down. They said giveaways to the corporate titans would make life more affordable for the rest of us. It was all bullshit. And when a bitter, betrayed populace searches for someone to blame, right-wing demagogues have little trouble finding scapegoats. People know when they're being lied to, but you won't hear any of this from the corporate media. Only independent journalism—powered and funded by people who believe in building a better world—can deliver truly trustworthy daily news. If you share our vision, please contribute whatever you can to sustain our work. |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
While much of the country was watching the testimony of Michael Cohen on Wednesday, Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) was questioning former Secretary of State Madeline Albright in a separate, largely vacant hearing room about sanctions and the pitfalls of past U.S. military interventions.
"Some scholars and practitioners of foreign policy have questioned whether sanctions are effective in changing the behavior of certain governments," Omar said, pointing out that economic sanctions can have dire effects on the innocent populations of targeted countries.
Albright, who once infamously told 60 Minutes reporter Lesley Stahl that the deaths of half-a-million Iraqi children due to sanctions were "worth it" to get rid of then-Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, said sanctions still have a role to play in American foreign policy.
Sanctions should be understood as a foreign policy tactic between diplomacy and force, explained Albright.
"We have learned a lot about sanctions," said Albright. "We learned that comprehensive sanctions, which we did in Iraq, hurt the people, and we began to look at targeted or smart sanctions."
Omar and Albright's exchange came during a hearing (pdf) in the House Foreign Affairs Committee Wednesday entitled "The Trump Administration's Foreign Policy: A Mid-Term Assessment." Albright was on hand to discuss the administration's priorities and didn't hold back in her assessment of the first two years of the Trump doctrine.
"The administration's record is marked by confusion, inconsistency, a lack of diplomacy, and, in some cases, a complete abdication of responsibility," Albright said in her testimony, adding that the State Department's funding and staffing woes were adding to a loss of U.S. standing in the world.
Newly-elected to the House, Omar joined The Intercept's Medhi Hassan this week to discuss her first two months in office. Listen to the podcast here.
Watch the full exchange between Omar and Albright below:
While much of the country was watching the testimony of Michael Cohen on Wednesday, Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) was questioning former Secretary of State Madeline Albright in a separate, largely vacant hearing room about sanctions and the pitfalls of past U.S. military interventions.
"Some scholars and practitioners of foreign policy have questioned whether sanctions are effective in changing the behavior of certain governments," Omar said, pointing out that economic sanctions can have dire effects on the innocent populations of targeted countries.
Albright, who once infamously told 60 Minutes reporter Lesley Stahl that the deaths of half-a-million Iraqi children due to sanctions were "worth it" to get rid of then-Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, said sanctions still have a role to play in American foreign policy.
Sanctions should be understood as a foreign policy tactic between diplomacy and force, explained Albright.
"We have learned a lot about sanctions," said Albright. "We learned that comprehensive sanctions, which we did in Iraq, hurt the people, and we began to look at targeted or smart sanctions."
Omar and Albright's exchange came during a hearing (pdf) in the House Foreign Affairs Committee Wednesday entitled "The Trump Administration's Foreign Policy: A Mid-Term Assessment." Albright was on hand to discuss the administration's priorities and didn't hold back in her assessment of the first two years of the Trump doctrine.
"The administration's record is marked by confusion, inconsistency, a lack of diplomacy, and, in some cases, a complete abdication of responsibility," Albright said in her testimony, adding that the State Department's funding and staffing woes were adding to a loss of U.S. standing in the world.
Newly-elected to the House, Omar joined The Intercept's Medhi Hassan this week to discuss her first two months in office. Listen to the podcast here.
Watch the full exchange between Omar and Albright below:
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.
To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good.
News & Opinion
Trending
Common Dreams, Inc. Founded 1997. Registered 501(c3) Non-Profit
Privacy Policy