https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/29/us/politics/joe-biden-advisers.html


Perhaps most influential among them is Antony Blinken, who worked for Mr. Biden on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in the 2000s and served as a deputy national security adviser and deputy secretary of state under Mr. Obama. Known more for his diplomatic touch than any fixed ideas, he is considered a likely candidate for national security adviser or secretary of state.

Bobby. wrote on Nov 9^th, 2020 at 7:47am:


Perfect for the Joint Chiefs... at least they're not talking about Hillary, who wanted to invade Libya when the US was committed in Iraq and Afghanistan, and she had zero thought for the young American men who would die as a result - and this at a time the JCS were saying NO, NOOO!

Read "Irregular Army" about the 'barbarianisation' of the American Legions... not least via the mass introduction of 'equal' women..... the book covered Outlanders* and a few other types being recruited, but skirted around the issue of masses of women to make up the numbers.**

Now look at Australia.....



**"We can put a million troops on the ground!"

"How many of them can find a bacon sandwich?"  (think it through, people - the scene in Band of Brothers with Major Winter's aide - as scrawny a paratrooper as you'd ever meet...)

I think it really depending on the situation in US over the next few weeks.  If the coronavirus gets out of control, and there is further rounds of shut downs and rising unemployment as a result, then, I would think the US would think twice about going down the trade war with China just yet.   Afterall, even if an effective policy can move jobs back to US, it takes time, commitments and also much needed incentive for the big business to do so. 

The narrative against China had been set in USA - in both parties.  It is inevitable, as China is rising and competing with US in terms of economy. 

As such, if the coronavirus is able to be adequately controlled, then it will most likely be someone more hardline against China like Mr Bolton.  If otherwise, then it would be someone more moderate. 

I feel that China will invade Taiwan and draw us into it.

Bobby. wrote on Nov 9^th, 2020 at 8:00am:


One or another of them might think he is weak and unwilling..... that would be a mistake in my eyes, but given the current world climate, such miscalculations - on a par with the Japanese attacking Pearl Harbour to force the US to peace with them on their terms - are Inevitable™.

The fog of diplomacy can sometimes exceed the fog of war.... no negotiation survives the first whiff of gunpowder.... and certainly the fog of intelligence can be dense...... hence the US continuing to exercise 'rights of passage' in the South China Sea and Taiwan Strait..... and a Taiwanese lady wanting to come be with me....

Did you know that in the Pacific in WWII the highest number of US casualties were in the Navy??  This could happen again in the first few weeks of any conflict ... so next time you see a soft and fat US sailor - buy him a drink....

I expect that US airpower will be decisive.... always interesting to revisit history - as with the Iraq War I'm reading now... one part says that the US air people were not mentally attuned to the concept of conflict initially, given that they had not, in the main, been in any such REAL thing for a while.... but that they quickly came good....