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Title: U.S. Drone Strikes Have Gone Up 432% Since Trump Took Office
Source:
Activist Post
URL Source: http://www.activistpost.com/2017/03 ... 2-since-trump-took-office.html
Published: Mar 8, 2017
Author: Carey Wedler
Post Date: 2017-03-09 13:34:14 by Deckard
Keywords: None
Views: 1046
Comments: 8
By Carey Wedler When he was in office, former President Barack Obama earned the ire of anti-war activists for his expansion of Bush’s drone wars. The Nobel Peace Prize-winning head of state ordered ten times more drone strikes than the previous president, and estimates late in Obama’s presidency showed 49 out of 50 victims were civilians. In 2015, it was reported that up to 90% of drone casualties were not the intended targets. Current President Donald Trump campaigned on a less interventionist foreign policy, claiming to be opposed to nation-building and misguided invasions. But less than two months into his presidency, Trump has expanded the drone strikes that plagued Obama’s “peaceful” presidency. According to an analysis from Micah Zenko, an analyst with the Council on Foreign Relations, Trump has markedly increased U.S. drone strikes since taking office. Zenko, who reported earlier this year on the over 26,000 bombs Obama dropped in 2016, summarized the increase: During President Obama’s two terms in office, he approved 542 such targeted strikes in 2,920 days—one every 5.4 days. From his inauguration through today, President Trump had approved at least 36 drone strikes or raids in 45 days—one every 1.25 days. These include three drone strikes in Yemen on January 20, 21, and 22; the January 28 Navy SEAL raid in Yemen; one reported strike in Pakistan on March 1; more than thirty strikes in Yemen on March 2 and 3; and at least one more on March 6. The Trump administration has provided little acknowledgment of the human toll these strikes are taking. As journalist Glenn Greenwald noted in the Intercept, the Trump administration hastily brushed off recent civilian casualties in favor of honoring the life of a single U.S. soldier who died during one of the Yemen raids just days after Trump took office: Greenwald notes this is typical of not just Trump, but the American war machine in general: We fixate on the Americans killed, learning their names and life stories and the plight of their spouses and parents, but steadfastly ignore the innocent people the U.S. government kills, whose numbers are always far greater. Though some Trump supporters sang his praises as a peace candidate before he took office, the president’s militarism was apparent on many occasions. He openly advocated increasing the size and scope of the military, a promise he is now moving to keep. And as Zenko highlights, Trump was disingenuous with his rhetoric against interventionism: He claimed to have opposed the 2003 Iraq War when he actually backed it, and to have opposed the 2011 Libya intervention when he actually strongly endorsed it, including with U.S. ground troops. Yet, Trump and his loyalists consistently implied that he would be less supportive of costly and bloody foreign wars, especially when compared to President Obama, and by extension, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. As Trump continues to dig his heels into decades-old policies he has criticized himself — reportedly mulling over sending ground troops into Syria — he is increasingly proving to be yet another establishment warmonger implementing policies that spawn the creation of more terrorists. As Zenko concludes: We are now on our third post-9/11 administration pursuing many of the same policies that have failed to meaningfully reduce the number of jihadist extremist fighters, or their attractiveness among potential recruits or self-directed terrorists. The Global War on Terrorism remains broadly unquestioned within Washington, no matter who is in the White House. 
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#1. To: Deckard (#0)
If this was even remotely true military would stop using drones. Im sure what is being hid in the data is that the families of the terrorist or terrorist themselves are being killed since radical islamist use even their own families as a shield and propaganda! So those that use this data are pushing propaganda from terrorist!
Thanks for the laugh. Thanks for the laugh. You laughing at fake news ie propaganda?
I'm laughing at you thinking that those in charge of drone strikes give a flying rat's ass about killing innocent civilians. Im sure they do not give a rat's ass about killing radical islamic terrorist and their family who harbor and shield for them. As for innocent people im sure they do just like any human. If even a sliver of this was true these guys would be brought up on charges and the program shut down.
Oh man - stop it, you're killing me...LOL!!! Glad you are having a funny psychotic moment. Nurses should be around soon to help you with some more of those drugs.
and estimates late in Obama’s presidency showed 49 out of 50 victims were civilians. In 2015, it was reported that up to 90% of drone casualties were not the intended targets.
#2. To: Justified (#1)
If this was even remotely true military would stop using drones.
“Truth is treason in the empire of lies.” - Ron Paul
Those who most loudly denounce Fake News are typically those most aggressively disseminating it.
#3. To: Deckard (#2)
If this was even remotely true military would stop using drones.
#4. To: Justified (#3)
You laughing at fake news ie propaganda?
“Truth is treason in the empire of lies.” - Ron Paul
Those who most loudly denounce Fake News are typically those most aggressively disseminating it.
#5. To: Deckard (#4)
I'm laughing at you thinking that those in charge of drone strikes give a flying rat's ass about killing innocent civilians.
#6. To: Justified (#5)
If even a sliver of this was true these guys would be brought up on charges and the program shut down.
“Truth is treason in the empire of lies.” - Ron Paul
Those who most loudly denounce Fake News are typically those most aggressively disseminating it.
#7. To: Deckard (#6)
Oh man - stop it, you're killing me...LOL!!!
#8. To: Deckard (#0)
The D&R terrorists hate us because we're free, to vote second party
"We (government) need to do a lot less, a lot sooner" ~Ron Paul
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