President Barack Obama, along with Vice President Joe Biden, meets with members of his national security team for a monthly meeting on Afghanistan in the Situation Room of the White House, June 6, 2011. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)
Ignoring Foreign Policy Won’t Make It Go Away -- Michael Gerson, Washington Post
President Obama has avoided the traditional Democratic reputation for foreign policy weakness by emulating his predecessor in one narrow but important respect. Obama has not only continued George W. Bush’s global war on terrorism — whatever it is currently called — but has also expanded its scope and lethality. The legal and physical infrastructure of the conflict, from the Patriot Act to Guantanamo Bay, remains in place. The mommy party, in this instance, has become daddy with a drone and a hit list.
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My Comment: When President Obama was elected in 2008, I commented on a number of occasions that President Obama will be focusing on national issues .... not international. Guess what .... I was wrong.
On international issues he has (for better or worse) made his mark. He has respected the Bush timetable to get out of Iraq, but he has escalated the war against Al Qaeda and it's affiliated groups through the use of drone strikes. He has now set a timetable to get out of Afghanistan after conducting his own mini-surge two years ago, but he has also embarked on a large number of low-key military operations .... from targeting Al Qaeda in Yemen and Somalia to offering assistance to Nigeria to combat radical Islamists. The State Department has also been busy, and while it does not have the budget or clout of the Pentagon, it is having an impact by influencing policy in places like Burma, Pakistan, and toughening (albeit lately) sanctions against Iran.
But even with these "successes", he has had his numerous failures (Russia reset, Iran sanctions, North Korea, etc...), and it is probably because of these failures that he is not spreading that message in his campaign .... for now.
As to Michael Gerson's assertion that President Obama is just kicking the can down the road on many foreign policy issues .... I will have to disagree. Sometimes it's best to sit back and look at certain conflicts (Syria is one that is coming to mind right now), and decide not to get into such a chaotic mess ASAP. Take your time, gather intelligence, form a coalition under your leadership, and then act if your own security is threatened.
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