WI - US intervention in South America in response to 9/11

[whall15]

In OTL, on the 20th September 2001, Undersecretary of Defence for Policy Douglas Feith recommended US intervention in South America instead of Afghanistan, apparently in the border region between Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay. According to Feith, attacking a non-Al-Qaeda target would "surprise" the terrorists.

The question is what would be the result of such an intervention.

 

[X_X]

That is literally the dumbest idea of a post-9/11 response I ever heard. And the Neocons in the White House would never allow it because it goes against their philosophy; you don't attack "civilized democracies" but rather "evil regimes" if you're a hawk. It's ASB that this would be strongly considered and frankly the fact that Rumsfeld didn't fire this Feith guy's ass on the spot makes me lose further respect of him.

But the reaction to this if it occured? Remember those Anti-War demonstrations in Europe following the Iraq invasion? The biggest protests in history? Multiply it by ten and place it in every city in the world. The USA just invaded a peaceful democratic country without even the pretext of "WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION", their logic literally being "lol let's troll Bin Laden". And everybody is scarred that they're next. This does not end pretty.

 

[arrowiv]

it makes you wonder what on earth was Feith smoking that day!