UKRAINE CONTINUED – OVERNIGHT:  Ukraine has now jumped to the top of the worry list.  A Russian invasion may be imminent.  This is what presidents are for.  Where do we get one?  From Fox: 

President Biden is considering sending a few thousand troops to Eastern Europe and the Baltic States as part of a broader NATO effort to bolster NATO allies that border Russia and Ukraine, given recent tensions, Fox News confirms.

Advisors presented Biden with various options to respond to Russia's aggressive stance in Eastern Europe in a Sunday briefing at Camp David. The president is considering sending 3,000-5,000 U.S. troops to Romania and to Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia as part of a broader NATO effort. Other NATO countries may also contribute troops to warn Russian President Vladimir Putin not to try to move into neighboring countries.

The president is also considering deploying naval vessels to make port visits to NATO allies who may feel threatened. Some equipment and troops in these proposed actions would come from Europe and some would come from the U.S.

COMMENT:  I believe this is the first time that the sending of troops has been mentioned.  Even the words themselves represent a dramatic escalation.  Last night we called for a presidential address to the nation.  We make the same plea today.  We also ask that the president meet with Congressional leaders of both parties, a tradition when a foreign crisis erupts.

There was a time when we asserted, in this country, that politics stops at the water's edge.  The saying derived from the practice of placing members of both parties in high defense positions when the nation was in danger. We didn't have a Defense Department in World War II.  We had a War Department and a Navy Department.   Franklin D. Roosevelt, a Democrat, was in the White House, but he appointed a Republican, Frank Knox, as secretary of the Navy, and another Republican, Henry L. Stimson, as Secretary of War.  Our enemies saw a united American front.

Today, sadly, nothing stops at the water's edge.  Foreign policy ceased being bipartisan years ago.   Already our Ukrainian policy is being pulverized by politicians.  Only the president can try to establish some bipartisanship as we wade through the crisis.  I don't see any attempt in that direction.

January 23,  2022