How Others See Us

For John, BLUF:  Not everyone around the world sees our politics the way we do.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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U.S. 'Could Spend THAAD Money Somewhere Better,' Senator Warns

This is from the English version of the Chosun Ilbo, out of Korea, 2 June 2017.

Here is the lede plus two, to set the stage:

U.S. Senator Dick Durbin on Wednesday warned President Moon Jae-in that Washington could divert the money for the Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense battery that has been stationed here somewhere else.

The peevish outburst came after Moon pledged to have the National Assembly reexamine the process of the THAAD deployment, which was rushed through by the previous administration.

Durbin is a ranking member of the Senate Committee on Appropriations and therefore has a say in how the U.S. spends its defense budget.

But, here is the payoff paragraph:

But Durbin is the Democratic whip, and his party has been completely routed in both houses of the U.S. Congress, so it is unclear how much sway his opinions hold.

By the way, the THADD Missile installation is a sunk cost.  The only ongoing expenses are stationing costs and they will come up in the periodic negotiations with Korea over the expenses of stationing US Forces in Korea.

Regards  —  Cliff