Ron Paul Says Koreans Should Decide the Fate of the Korean Peninsula

Dr. Ron Paul calls for the removal of the "tripwire" and the long, long overdue withdrawal of American troops from the peninsula (roughly two minutes into the clip):

Ron Paul CNN Late Edition (05/20/07)

The good doctor defends himself well in another character assassination attempt interview. He suggests that the Koreas would be unified if it were not for the American presence here. His non-interventionist foreign policy would have constitutionally-mandated congressional approval for any war. He notes that it is not in the American interest to intervene in a civil war in Korea, China, or any other part of the world.

Come to think of it, I don't recall Korea being mentioned in the Constitution of the United States of America. Nor do I remember Korea being mentioned in George Washington's Farewell Address as an exception to "our true policy to steer clear of permanent alliances with any portion of the foreign world." Neither is Korea mentioned as an exception in these wise words from John Quincy Adams on U.S. Foreign Policy: "She [America] is the well-wisher to the freedom and independence of all[; s]he is the champion and vindicator only of her own."

The world's twelfth largest economy is more than capable of being the "champion and vindicator" of her own liberty. American forces have been here for sixty-two years, which is as close to a "permanent alliance" as can be imagined.

[link via The New Beginning]

UPDATE: This post is being discussed by the readership of The Marmot's Hole, the premier blog of the expat-in-Korea blogosphere─Ron Paul: the Kang Jeong-koo of the Republican Party?