Though my opinion may be different, you do have a very strong argument, and I commend you for that. I just tend to like to credit the military who made the plan and executed it. While Obama was out on the golf course that morning, which IS NOT a bad thing, there were people busy planning the attack.
Also, from a political standpoint, I don’t believe that the consequences of a failed mission would be that disastrous. There have been failed missions before, and the consequences were not disastrous politically.
I must admit though that this article reminds me of Huck’s struggle between his deformed conscience and his sound heart. After listening to you for a couple of semesters, I was able to tell which article was yours by the title. Thank you for writing this and putting your ideas out there. I an just happy that at least you’re well informed.
]]>I highly suggest reading my review of the bin Laden military action here.
]]>Thanks for the comment, Josh. I do believe that Obama is responsible for getting bin Laden. Part of my point in this piece is that Obama made the capture or killing of bin Laden a priority in his Presidency, as he told Katie Couric he would even before he took office (http://bit.ly/j9vVYc). He made it a priority, and it happened. As exemplified in the clip above, Bush did not think it was important to get bin Laden, and it didn’t happen during his Presidency. Bush’s priorities were elsewhere—getting Saddam Hussein and expanding the “war on terror” into a wide-ranging and open-ended struggle, which I think was a terrible miscalculation.
Obama, by contrast, made bin Laden a priority. As you note, he ordered the killing. He therefore took responsibility for it—a moral responsibility, most importantly, and one that I myself am not entirely comfortable with, as it seems quite close to revenge through violence, rather than the type of justice we claim as Americans to believe in. But, setting that aside, it should be remembered that Obama put his Presidency on the line in making the order to kill bin Laden. If the mission had ended badly, the political repercussions could have been disastrous. Obama would have been held responsible, and rightly so—just as Bush should be held responsible for the disasters of his Presidency.
]]>However, the “USA, USA” shouting outside the White House strikes me as being somewhere on a continuum between absolutely immature to potential provocative. I thought that I was watching “Friday Night Lights’ with Wolf Blitzer acting like the football team’s carnival barker, the car salesman Buddy. I hope that at some time the president can address that, although it will be politically risky. One other thing. His statesman ship seems to be tainted when he says “kill” before “capture” re. bin Laden. I wish that 9-11 had been dealt with as a criminal case rather than a national act of aggression. In a criminal case, you don’t execute before you convict. But thanks to Frank for being the “first on my block” to address the issues.
]]>You captured my thoughts exactly in your piece. Thanks for writing it.
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