Today Sen. Bernie Sanders takes to the pages of the New York Times with an op-ed urging the U. S. to end its support of the war in Yemen:
The likely assassination of the Saudi critic and Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi underscores how urgent it has become for the United States to redefine our relationship with Saudi Arabia, and to show that the Saudis do not have a blank check to continue violating human rights.
One place we can start is by ending United States support for the war in Yemen. Not only has this war created a humanitarian disaster in one of the world’s poorest countries, but also American involvement in this war has not been authorized by Congress and is therefore unconstitutional.
Welcome back to the fight, Sen. Sanders. It would have been nice for you to condemn U. S. support for the war back when Barack Obama was president and began our support for the war but better late than never, I guess.
In the op-ed Sen. Sanders hits most of the major notes—the violence of the war, our support, that the war isn’t a reaction to Iranian support for the Houthis in Yemen rather its cause. He fails to mention that one of the causes of unrest in Yemen was President Obama’s drone war but not every op-ed can be about everything.
Sanders can’t criticize Obama and get the nomination, which he won’t be allowed to win anyway.
Chris Hedges called it the triumph of hope over experience.