the beacon of freedom must not be extinguished

“Today is a day that will live in infamy,” said President Roosevelt when Japan attacked Pearl Harbor in 1941. September 11th was another such day. No better statement sums up the shock and more importantly the pain that was inflicted on our great nation when those two acts bloodied our democratic soil. They are days that we must never forget for history repeats itself when remembrance becomes nothing more than a footnote in the annals of history. 

September 11th was a vivid and horrific reminder of what those who wish to inflict pain for reasons that we in a country founded on liberty and freedom could never understand. And we should therefore remember that we must confront tyranny, oppression and evil when it is clear that those who possess these malignant views have no interest in peace for it is their goal to seed discontent and instability for their own gains. We, and the world as a whole are confronted with many examples of this today like Russia’s President Vladimir Putin. The world must unite to fight him and his unbridled assault on humanity. He will clearly continue to assault the morals, values and human decency that brought the world back from the precipice of total destruction over two world wars.

Every country has the fundamental right to set their own domestic and foreign policy. But when the actions of leaders clothed in the regalia of tyranny and oppression imperil the basic human rights of their citizens and when their actions impact the state of world affairs and the safety and security of another country and by extension the world as a whole – as in the case of a dictator like Putin - governments and defenders of the free world must speak up and act. 

I have worked around the world and based on personal experience I can attest to the evilness and horrific acts of Russia’s President for life . The world has seen what he is capable of. He imprisons and poisons political opponents, props up dictators like President Lukashenko in Belarus, supports Syrian President Assad’s use of chemical weapons on women and children, offers bounties for the killing of American soldiers in Afghanistan, and works illegally to influence election outcomes in the U.S. and United Kingdom. Russia harbors Ukraine’s former President Victor Yanukovych, who approved the killing of Ukrainian civilians peacefully protesting against his government. And Mr. Putin violates the territorial integrity of other countries— the illegal annexation of Crimea and the occupation of the Donbass region of Ukraine mark two glaring examples.

Moreover, this terrible carnage, and the expansion of fascism and tyranny, may be poised to proliferate.  As I write this, Putin is amassing more troops and tanks on Ukraine’s borders, which is believed by many to be preparation for an invasion into more areas of Eastern Ukraine as part of his ultimate quest of restoring the former Soviet Union – which the U.S. spent billions of dollars and countless lives to break apart because of the threat it represented to world peace.

But why be worried about Putin now?

History shows that Putin is a master at taking advantage of global uncertainty and volatility – the aphrodisiac for his lust of power. He sees the perfect storm coming, which will again enable him to act without consequence. At the nexus of this storm are actions by President Trump – a president who continues to give Putin a green light to do whatever he wants; who weakens NATO by moving troops out of Germany (a critical deterrent to Putin); who challenges the sanctity of America’s electoral process, a bedrock example for how all free societies should conduct their elections. Additionally, Trump’s foreign policy focuses more on political opportunism than global safety and security. One example of the latter is Trump’s growing confrontation with China, which though I support, is allowing Putin to operate in the shadows of American foreign policy.

President Trump has turned America from the beacon of steadfast democracy into a signpost of isolationism — heralding the abdication of its global responsibility to be a bulwark protecting democratic values. Left unchecked, the rise of fascism and extremism will lead to political and economic calamity bringing catastrophic instability to the world.

Trump’s actions coupled with the pandemic that is consuming EU and UK leaders and a United Nations focused on how to avoid catastrophic starvation in underdeveloped nations because of the impact of COVID, leaves the world without the leadership and focus to build a strong economic and military alliance against Putin should he again take aggressive action against a sovereign nation.

Many people around the world, especially in the U.S., may question why what Putin does in Ukraine and Eastern Europe matters to them. President Trump’s disinterest towards protecting the world against unchecked aggression and the spread of fascism feeds such skepticism.  All human history demonstrates the need for international action to stop this unchecked and illegal aggression – action that needs the support of the U.S. for it to be a viable response.

We must ask ourselves; do we want a world of Putins?

That is what we will have unless world leaders are willing to stand strong for the democratic values of prosperity through peace; the respect for the sanctity of life regardless of religious, racial, and ethnic beliefs; respect for the rule of law; and freedom through individual liberties and rights.

If the world, and especially President Trump, continue to degrade the belief in the core democratic values that protect the economic and political stability of the world, then inevitably the world will nurture the rise of future Putins – an outcome that the world simply can’t afford.

America is critical to stopping Putin and the world is asking President Trump to make clear, not with just words but decisive actions, that America will continue to protect freedom and democracy. This is critical not just because the world needs such support – but because failure to do so will impact America economically and politically for generations to come.

If we remember nothing else from September 11th, let’s not forget it is imperative that America continue being the beacon of freedom and democracy that gives people throughout the world inspiration. That gives them the knowledge that they are not alone in the fight against tyranny and fascism and that we will have a world free of Putins and those whose wish is to destroy the values that separate freedom from oppression.

This is why we must stop Putin now before the world is faced with another day of infamy.