Great article on John Kerry and foreign policy - very long but includes a great list

of Obama foreign policy accomplishments - some of which never get listed. Great counter to right wing attacks - like that of the loathsome Donald Trump Jr - that Obama's foreign policy was a failure.

The article's title - dealing with an attack on Kerry by Cruz - is not the main topic of the article, but the article's extensive collection of articles on the charge made by Trump, Pompeo, Hailly, Cruz etc is a good resource into why the charge of "collusion with Iran" is ridiculous. Here is part of Kerry's response to Cruz:

I haven’t talked to the Iranians since the day that Trump pulled out of the deal. I haven’t had any conversations with them .

At the time that I met with then it was at international conferences where everybody talked to them. The UN General Assembly. The Munich Security Conference. And the Peace Conference in Oslo, Norway, where invited guests were. Those were the only places that I’ve been in any conversation with them, and it’s pretty normal for an ex-Secretary and other people to have those kinds of conversations.

These guys are dangerous. They are incredible liars. They don’t hesitate to gin up that kind of frustration or anger or whatever you want to call it. I mean they just bring out the worst in people.

And by the way, when I had a conversation with them (the Iranians) I raised Yemen, missiles, Israel, their threats against Israel, their interference in other countries and told them point-blank that they are making life difficult for themselves in the world. So I stood up for American principles and it’s a disgrace that these guys play, just lie to people like that and try to energize it.


On ISIS, he speaks of the Obama administration setting up the coalition and handing over a very much weakened ISIS.

He speaks of the US leading the effort that stopped ebola in Africa and opposing Russia on Ukraine - where sanctions kept Russia from moving further to Kiev.

On the Iranian nuclear deal he not only defends it as the strongest monitoring ever put in place - where in contrast when speaking of NK he notes how many things are not defined and other deficits, but points out that all the other countries are working to keep it in place.

On the Paris Accord, he speaks of cities and states still in.

He also says of Trump on Syria, he points out that Trump has not used any diplomatic effort and that the two bombings have not changed Assad's policies.
http://politics.blog.mystatesman.com/2018/09/21/cruz-says-kerry-colludes-kerry-says-cruz-deceives/