Let’s say a would-be Egyptian dictator tosses the head of the military, supports a terrorist assault on Israel, and threatens to send tanks into the streets to fight any opposition. Let’s also say you’re the President of the United States. Would you: (a) threaten to cut off aid; (b) actually cut off aid; (c) send 20 F-16s to Egypt?
If you’re Barack Obama, your clear answer is C. Beginning January 22, the first portions of America’s $1 billion foreign aid grant to Egypt hits the ground in Cairo – four F-16 jets. The last time the United States greenlit aid to Egypt was 2010, when deposed authoritarian Hosni Mubarak was in power. House Committee on Foreign Affairs Chair Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL) said, “The Obama administration wants to simply throw money at an Egyptian government that the president cannot even clearly state is an ally of the United States.
How nice are these jets? According to Lockheed Martin, they’re the top of the line. “We remain committed to providing our customer with a proven, advanced 4th Generation multirole fighter,” bragged John Larson, vice president of Lockheed Martin’s F-16 program.
The New York Times has reported that American-provided weapons ended up in the hands of terrorists in Libya before the Benghazi attack. Clearly, we haven’t learned our lesson.