Many of these ideas come from the research of Historian Howard Zinn
In December 1989, The United States invaded Panama because they were unhappy with the defiance of General Manuel Noreiga. Vice President George Bush and President Ronald Reagan had overlooked Noreiga’s corruption and authoritarianism because he had worked with the CIA. He had originally done what the United States asked in allowing Panama to be a location for contra operations against the Sandinista government of Nicaragua.
According to Howard Zinn, “But by 1987 Noreiga’s usefulness was over, his activities in the drug trade were in the open, and he became a convenient target for an administration which wanted to prove that the United States, apparently unable to destroy the Castro regime or the Sandinistas or the revolutionary movement in El Salvador, was still a power in the Caribbean.” The U.S. claimed that they were going after Noreiga for his participation in the drug trade. This is a convenient story that masks other potential motives.
There was an interview with a Civilian Worker at the Rio Hato Military Base in Panama City in February of 1990. (Roughly two months after the attack)
He stated, “None of us really believed that an invasion would happen, when you took into consideration the overwhelming difference in power between the two countries.” He highlighted the fact that the U.S. could have taken Noreiga without killing thousands the way he did. “Another group of students was captured by the U.S. soldiers. There were a number of these students killed. This was because the U.S. troops didn’t realize they were practically children. They were all under 18 years old. They were machine-gunned before they could surrender. They were unarmed and before they told them to surrender they had opened fire.” Democrats such as John Kerry and Ted Kennedy applauded this. George Bush Sr. hypocritically then turned around in 1991 and declared that no large country (Iraq) should invade a smaller country (Kuwait), When combined with Bush’s involvement in the Iran-Contra affair there is a case to be made that the man was seriously lacking in judgement. A large part of the invasion of Panama was the U.S. trying to assert dominance and heal their bruised ego after getting embarrassed in Vietnam.
Some individuals such as Michael Mansfield have argued that George W. Bush should have been tried for war crimes. He highlights that the invasion of Iraq was unauthorized by the United Nations. Article 1 of the U.N. Charter highlights that the purpose of the U.N. is to “maintain international peace and security and to that end to take effective collective measures for the prevention and removal of threats to the peace.” He argues the UN should make the decision of collective measures, and not one individual state. Mansfield explains, “regime change, however desirable, is not permitted by the Charter. If it were, powerful nations could go round the world picking off the weak– or more particularly the states thought to be hostile to their own ambitions.”
There is a problem with being friendly with someone who violated international law in the way George W. Bush did. The apparently good friendship that Michelle Obama and Bush is weird. Many in the media play it up that it is a good thing they can put their politics aside, but are there other implications it teaches future generations? Does it teach future generations that it is alright to look the other way when less powerful people suffer from the actions of more powerful people. Does it confirm the idea that right makes right? It’s odd that Ellen is also friendly toward Bush.
It may boost Ellen’s career in the moment, but this type of behavior could be normalizing war crimes. It shows future politicians that they can commit crimes against humanity and still be part of the “club.” Other politicians and figures in the media accept them with open arms. Do we really believe that George W. Bush and Ellen have a lot in common? Ellen likes cats and George approved torturing people that may be innocent in Guantanamo Bay. Ellen likes red beans and rice, while George likes dropping bombs on civilian populations in Iraq. As long as they are both part of the club and it looks good for the both of them then everything is dandy.