marion: First off, sorry for my sharp reaction. There is a reason for it, however. Clinton’s unwillingness to fully commit to the Somalia operation in 1993 (due to his worries about how America was perceived), resulted in the deaths of two of my friends, one a Ranger, the other Army Special Forces.

His deciding to cut and run following the Task Force Ranger operation (“Black Hawk Down”), was one of the things that emboldened Osama bin Laden and al Qaeda to strike us on 9/11.

His use of “soft power” and multilateralism accomplished nothing, and ultimately put us at greater risk due to the widely held belief that America had lost her will to respond. The series of terrorist strikes during his presidency that were never answered and the lost opportunities to destroy al Qaeda in its infancy are well documented, both of which contributed greatly to our present situation as regards Islamic terrorism.

I have always found moral cowardice more reprehensible than physical cowardice, and he represents true moral cowardice to me. I had significant difficulties with many of the policies that Reagan implemented during his tenure, but I also understood the larger nature of the conflict and admired his resolve when it came to defeating communism and the Soviet Bloc.