Letting A Bully Do His Worst

American Decline: Years of diminishing U.S. power under President Obama have brought us to today's historic Mideast dilemma: proving our willingness to shoot at Russian forces or keep our tail between our legs.

This is the moment Vladimir Putin has been waiting for. His moves against the Ukraine, and years earlier against Georgia, were on the periphery of his turf. Making war within the Middle East, now that's what a superpower does.

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Russian bombers are defending Moscow's longtime ally, going back to the bad old days of the Soviet Union: the terrorist regime of President Bashar Assad, which is also supported by Islamofascist Iran. The Islamic State was the purported target, but U.S.-backed rebels may have been hit.

Carly Fiorina, whose debate performances have propelled her into the top tier of 2016 Republican presidential hopefuls, on Wednesday told Fox News' Sean Hannity that the U.S. should establish a no-fly zone around U.S.-backed Syrian rebels.

Would that mean using "force against Russian jets?" Fiorina hoped not, but added: "If it does come to that, I think we must be prepared."

Nuclear-armed U.S. and Russia are now at risk of fighting one another. Step back and look at the big picture.

Americans thought we had foreign policy problems before Obama. But the former Soviet Union never contemplated getting involved in Iraq or Afghanistan; the U.S. was still in avenge-9/11 mode; and despite some mistakes we successfully ousted Saddam Hussein, the Taliban, and scared Libya's Moammar Gadhafi into voluntarily giving up his nuclear weapons program.

We were the world's lone superpower, and we were feared. The Russians were has-beens, and they weren't about to cross us militarily in the most volatile region of the world.

Fast forward to today.

Read the rest of the IBD editorial HERE.

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