The United Nations Human Rights Council is holding a three-week session running through July 6, and rumors now swirl that the United States may not attend. According to various unnamed sources, the U.S. will soon leave the Council. Nothing has been confirmed, of course, but to those keeping up with the drama, it seems a near certainty.
Is it possible? Certainly, and it wouldn’t be the first time. Is it going to happen? It does appear so. Should it happen? Of course. The U.N. and its Human Rights Council is an ironically named parasitic drain on our nation, one for which we get nothing of value in return.
Definitely Out, Maybe, Probably… Hopefully?
According to Reuters, an anonymous source in the U.S. says that the withdrawal appeared to be imminent. Other diplomatic sources, also unnamed, said that it was not a question of if, but when. Yet another unnamed U.S. official, on the other hand, did not confirm these rumors for Reuters, saying only that “We are still moving ahead with our engagement for the coming session.”
Despite the unverifiable origins of the Reuters story that sparked the current media frenzy, it certainly would not be surprising if we did skip the session or even leave the group entirely. Not only has the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, threatened to leave if the “chronic anti-Israel bias” isn’t removed, but we have actually left the so-called Human Rights Council before.
Anti-Israel Sentiment and Bush’s Boycott
Claiming that the Council was stacked with anti-Israel members, the United States, under President George W. Bush, boycotted it for three years. It wasn’t until Obama took over in 2009 that we rejoined. Of the current 47 members, most are either ruled by a Muslim majority or a socialist or communist regime that despises anything even remotely Christian or Jewish.
Rather than address the nigh-constant terrorist threats and attacks by groups either controlled by or funded through the Palestinian Authority, the U.N. Human Rights Council has chosen to maintain an anti-Israel propaganda campaign, detailing their alleged crimes against humanity. Bush was right to pull out of the Council, and Trump would be just as right to do it today.
Current Council Has No Room to Talk
There’s no denying the irony in forming a group to keep tabs on human rights violations, then putting it in the hands of countries like China, Cuba, Egypt, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and Venezuela. None of these nations are known as bastions of liberty and justice for all. And these aren’t the only members with troubling human rights records. At the risk of offending the Muslims or the anti-Christian socialists and communists who control these nations, perhaps we should have a look at Matthew 7:5. “Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye.” (KJV)
A Good First Step
It’s entirely possible – indeed, quite likely – that the U.S. will pull out of the Council. And the signs are not exactly hidden, either. Under President Trump, we’ve gone against the U.N. in nearly every decision regarding Israel. And they have attempted retaliation. But ultimately, the Trump administration wields more power over the entire group of nations than they do over us.
The United States pays the U.N. roughly $8 billion every year. That was 22% of the group’s 2017 budget – and there are 195 other members. The next single nation to come close is Japan, covering about 10% of the overall budget. The Trump administration has hinted that those who work against it will find the well of American magnanimity can dry up shockingly fast. Without U.S. financial support, how long before the U.N. collapses?
Beyond that, many of those nations who so often vote against us receive millions of dollars in U.S. foreign aid. And what do we get for paying top dollar? Nothing worth having. The vast majority of the other member states accept our money but reject our ideas and values. So much of the money goes to funding terrorists and regimes that starve their people under strict socialist rule.
Pulling out of the Council would be a good first step, but it’s hardly enough. We need to cut ties with the U.N. entirely. We pay far too much to be in the club, and the other members don’t want to play with us anyway. It’s time to stop spending U.S. tax dollars to support our enemies and start using that money to do more good here at home. Maybe that means another big tax cut for the American people; maybe it means the government actually honors the responsibilities it took upon itself the moment such taxes were levied – maybe even a little of both.
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