The Trump Doctrine

A suggestion.  In light of Trump's attack on Syria in response to Syria's use of chemical weapons, maybe we need a "Trump Doctrine" to guide international relations during his presidency?

The Trump Doctrine.

1. If anyone used chemical, biological or nuclear weapons against anyone, including both military and civilian targets, the USA will force the evil-doer to pay a price.  Enemies and neutral parties will be attacked; friends will be punished, likely through massive economic sanctions.  The world will still be a nasty place, but a line has to be drawn....just don't go there.

2. Anyone committing genocide and mass abuse of civilian populations, including their own populations in the case of world leaders, may be subject to arrest by US military forces, and the forces of America's allies, at any time, anywhere.  The USA will not become the world's policeman, but it will also no longer stand by and do nothing in the face of obvious breaches of the most basic human rights, sometimes on a massive scale. Those who are arrested may be delivered to the International Criminal Court of Justice if the USA agrees with the court's indictment, or to American military courts for trial.  Baddies will still do bad stuff in the world....but now they will have to do so never knowing whether or not they may find themselves in a foreign prison.

OK...the USA does some bad stuff, notably bombing foreign persons with drone strikes that have only a very shaky legal basis, at best.  And, some of America's allies are also absolutely awful, and the USA cannot be relied upon to ever arrest them.

So what.  America's foreign policy has been a mass of contractions and hypocrisy for decades. That is not about to change.  I can live with that if it means a virtual halt to the use of weapons of mass destruction, especially against civilians, coupled with significant worry on the part of evil people about whether or not they may be arrested some day, causing them to at least think twice before unleashing the dogs of hell.

Trump could do a lot worse.

BTW - there was no "false flag" in respect of the recent gas attack in Syria.  Some have claimed that Assad is winning the war, so he had no reason to do this, so it likely didn't happen.  Well, no. Assad has spent his entire time in office ruling based on terror.  He gassed his own population precisely because he is winning, as a prelude to what lies in store in a future Syria for anyone who would challenge him again.  Gassing his own people is completely consistent with everything we know about this monster.  He needs to be out of power and incarcerated.