WHILE WE SLEEP – AT 8:58 A.M. ET:  We have warned repeatedly here that, while trying to solve our economic woes, we're taking our eye off the foreign-policy ball, especially in regard to Iran.  But the new chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is clearly worried, and sounding alarms.  From Reuters:

General Martin Dempsey says Tehran's nuclear activities and its attacks against US soldiers in Iraq show "miscalculation of US resolve."

US President Barack Obama's pick to become the top US military officer warned Iran not to underestimate US resolve in responding to attacks on US forces in Iraq by Iranian-backed militia and Tehran's continued nuclear activity .

General Martin Dempsey did not outline potential US responses in a Senate hearing on his nomination to become chairman of the US military's Joint Chiefs of Staff, a post he is expected to assume in October.

But his remarks underscored growing US concern in the wake of the killing of 14 US service members in hostile incidents in June, the highest monthly toll in Iraq in three years.

Asked what his message to Iran would be, Dempsey said: "It would be a gross miscalculation to believe that we will simply allow that to occur without taking serious consideration or reacting to it."

Dempsey appeared to signal his fear that Tehran might go too far, both in its actions in Iraq and with its nuclear program, which the West believes is aimed at making nuclear weapons. Tehran says the program is for peaceful purposes.

In his written response to questions from the Armed Services Committee, Dempsey wrote: "With its nuclear activities and its surrogate activities in southern Iraq, there is a high potential that Iran will make a serious miscalculation of US resolve."

COMMENT:  If you were Iran, looking at the U.S. today, how much resolve would you see?  It took Obama days finally to get to a microphone to denounce the Iranian crackdown on democracy demonstrators in its own streets in 2009.  Iran is rarely mentioned by the administration today.

But Dempsey is right.  Ultimately, if pushed, any American president, including this one, would have to take action.  And yes, there is enormous danger of a miscalculation in Tehran that could lead to a regional conflagration.  The Japanese miscalculated at Pearl Harbor; Al Qaeda miscalculated on 9-11. 

But the president himself must send stronger signals that our economic woes will not lead to a loss of American resolve internationally.  Those signals have not been sent.  On the contrary, Democratic budget proposals contain alarming cuts in defense spending just at a time when foreign threats are increasing, not decreasing. 

July 27, 2011