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Random Bits
Again, these are a busy few days for me, so posting will be light. But I want to sound off on three things, quickly.
1. I was not too angry about the fact that the United States is conducting clandestine operations in Libya. Frankly, I support liaising with the rebels (though not arming them), and I also support observing air strikes. Air strikes are generally more effective at doing what you want them to do -- and not doing what you do not want them to do, like kill civilians -- when they are observed. What makes me mad is the inability of officials to understand that clandestine operations are no longer clandestine after you blab about them to Mark Mazetti and Eric Schmitt. Now, if officials in the administration leaked this information as part of a carefully planned, tightly coordinated information operation designed to hasten Gadhafi's departure from Libya, I take back all my criticism and indeed salute the administration. If, by contrast, this information was leaked because of domestic political pressure and in response to complaints the administration was not doing enough to support the rebels, then I know of a circle of hell Dante forgot in which the leakers will someday find themselves residing. These kinds of leaks -- which involve disclosing the presence and activities of men in harm's way -- are the kind that make me want to run around Washington, DC kicking "officials" in their sensitive parts.
2. I got the opportunity, on Tuesday night, to address some of the veterans in town to lobby the Congress on behalf of the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America. I want to salute the great work this organization is doing, and I encourage you all to support it as you see fit.
3. The Elite Eight Round of Twitter Fight Club resulted in yours truly advancing to the Final Four in a match-up with Glenn Greenwald, a man who has, like, more followers on Twitter than Charlie Sheen. So instead of a Twitter Fight, I am suggesting this as a way of settling our semi-final match-up. (It's a game of honor and diplomacy.) No word yet from the tournament officials if this is okay.
Wait, you're extremely bust
Wait, you're extremely bust but still have time to dick around with a "twitter fight?"
At the majority of FP blogs I
At the majority of FP blogs I visit, I am now visually assaulted by the requisite Twitter feeds....
One-liners plus super serious tweets = Don Rickles meets foreign policy.
It's oddly offensive and hilarious at the same time. Whenever I watch C-CSPAN (I know, I know), I imagine a Twitter "bubble" over every official's head as the testify. And you know what? Nine times out ten, the Twitter "bubble" reads: "that is the stupidest, most moronic question I have ever been asked, Senator Dim Bulb, blah blah blah...."
Is that 140 characters?
I'm not sure I want to know everyone's thoughts.
OK, well, a senior officer
OK, well, a senior officer commented to me yesterday that surely there were US forces clandestinely on the ground, and I said, no way, because, why? You could use British or French Special Forces teams to spot your targets, it'd work almost as well, and gather intel and then the President wouldn't have to issue a word-parsing denial about what he meant about having no troops on the ground. And that convinced him. So maybe Exum wasn't surprised, but I was surprised as hell.
Trust me, the information
Trust me, the information about ground targeting and intelligence teams was leaked because of domestic political pressure and in response to complaints the administration was not doing enough to support the rebels.
Don't assume, though, that the leakers were doing this on their own. Obama's War is a product of the White House, which started it because it believed one thing about how easy it would be to end; is now -- within days -- ignoring the President's own declaration that no Americans would be on the ground in Libya because it now believes something else; and will within the next week or so start implementing a jury-rigged program for arming and training rebels because it will come to believe they can win only in this way. When the policy changes, the message has to keep up. The Obama White House may be a little weak on the policy, but they're pros at shaping the message.
Operational security has a different meaning in a war of conscience.
Andrew you need to get Obama
Andrew you need to get Obama to have a Gastrojejunostomy so you can see out better. Your future is way too attached to this administration.
This administration and its lieutenants have repeatedly held the American public in the dark. It is the standard mode of operation since 2008. It has been done with ObamaCare, with FOIA requests, 2nd amendment issues, and now war. If Libya is such a righteous cause, then let the sunshine on it. The publishers should change the title of "Audacity of Hope" to "Arrogance of Hope". Going into Libya with all the distracting ambiguity smacks of the "Gulf of Tonkin"
Forward Observers are part of any bombing war. You do not need a Presidential Finding to put observers on the ground. You do need a Presidential Finding to field Forward Observers if your intent is to mislead the American public that "boots will not be on Libyan soil". Even you, with your own words, have found this Administrations leadership misleading. Special Forces are usually the people given the forward observation task in operations like this. The first ships directed to Libya were not aircraft carriers, they were ones with helicopter operations. The ones that would carrier forward observers, boots on the ground. Seal Teams were the first American boots on the ground in Libya!
The other task that was put forward as justification of the Presidential Finding was to collect HUMINT on the Rebels. The Administration with their own words still do not know the exact composition of Rebel forces, that is after the bombing started. I find that troubling at best.
Even Robert Gates came out and told the truth, I respect him for that. America has no interests in Libya. Clinton gave Gates a public ball mashing after telling the truth. You can loosely link Arab Spring to American interests, but once done you lose the argument for a LIMIT OPERATION. One of the problems with the Arab Spring linkage is no ones knows how it will turn out. Only HEAVY foreign and INVOLVEMENT from the US can guarantee an out come, that does not bode well for calling Libya a LOW COST OPERATION. Like everything else about this FANTASY WAR, the details are all in the dark only to bubble up to the sunshine after America gets more pregnant. The other issue with the Arab Spring Linkage is the fact that the US TRUE INTEREST in the ME is really pissed off at the US. Saudi Arabia has been a loyal partner, giving the US information on Yemen terrorist. Because of America's actions in the ME, Saudi Arabia will not receive Clinton or Gates. I would say that America's interests just took a back seat !
I have no problem with letting the sun shine on Libyan operations. Everywhere the sun has been allowed to shine on the Obama administration, it starts to smell. Politically motivated? The whole Libya operation is a political maneuver for regime change. Everything that Obama's administration has said about Libya has been one massive political spin to make the operation look like anything BUT regime change. Even you , with your own words, wished the administration would call a spade a spade. It is on record in the post with your policy paper.
For the Administration to come out with the truth and the real objective is way too late. The lies have been spun and I will not trust this administration one little bit. With all the smoke screen, why should the American public believe the spending numbers for Libya on this WAR. The Administration has dodged everything else, should they not dodge the true cost of the WAR? THIS ADMINISTRATION HAS LOST ALL CREDIBILITY.
What is really DANGEROUS about this administration is that this WAR is unfolding like Vietnam did. It has only been a couple of weeks since the start of operations and the Administration is talking about arming the rebels and sending in advisers ! The Administration has committed itself to a WAR that will determine its political future in the 2012 US elections, the DANGEROUS part is Obama is just as cornered and desperate as Gadhafi . To make matters worse, Obama is leading from behind. Obama went to Brazil at the out come of the war. The only thing that could have been have accomplished from Obama's presence in Brazil is to talk about a framework for only more talk on trade. Everyone knows that the US is far from open trade with Brazil. Obama got out of the US to dodge the Libya and war power discussion, PERIOD. It was a vacation and Obama even took his family! Now Obama is using the ME crisis to retool his ENERGY agenda, while GATES and CLINTON do his heavy lifting. If that is not leading from BEHIND, I do not know what is. OBAMA is playing politics BIG TIME, by hedging his bets on Libya. He wants to be in the background so he does not get anything on him if operations turn sour. The whole BLACK OPS thing is more of the same, not to mention it BURIES the operation BUDGET in the CIA BLACK BUDGET !
The American taxpayer will never know what Libya truly cost.
Thank God someone in the Washington is willing to tell the American public the truth. If Dante's Inferno is the destination of people that leaked the detail of the BLACK OPS, then they will be in good company with this good Nation's Founding Fathers.
Andrew, you covered you career with your expungement........I am on my way to hell with good company, it is a better place to be.
PS.....I really got a laugh out of today's press. During the Arab Spring, the protesters were showered with praise of their use of social networking to promote their cause. The Libyan Rebels used the same methods to promote their case in Libya. Today the Administration painted the Rebel as not having the tools to communicate ! So which is it Washington, communication geniuses using technology at its best or a bunch of Rebel walking around the desert not being able to get their agenda right? It is a ploy to justify deeper involvement and ESCALATION of the WAR !
LOL Both Obama and Gadhafi are trying to negotiate were that magical HISTORICAL line is draw so that neither one is on the wrong side of it ! Gadhafi acts badly, you will get no argument there from this author. Is Gadhafi's poor judgment good reason for this Administration's choice of direction? I say that both Obama and Gadhafi have made some really poor choices in life. At least Gadhafi knows his.
I guess it too unlikely to
I guess it too unlikely to include in your list of reasons why this news might have been leaked.....but is just possible someone inside, somewhere said, 'screw this. They are lying to the American. We've had enough of this shit' ?
Or, is so unimaginable these days?
jonst - it seems like a
jonst - it seems like a pretty innocuous leak to have been motivated by moral outrage.
Gastrojejunostomy - I don't see how the administration has seriously jeopardized our relationship with Saudi Arabia. We've been absolutely silent about all the troops they sent to Bahrain and we haven't put pressure on Saleh to resign. Egypt, Tunisia and Libya are outside Saudi Arabia's sphere of influence. So long as we leave the Gulf alone and prevent Iran from going nuclear, the worst we can do is annoy them.
I thought it was a bad idea
I thought it was a bad idea to intervene in Libya too. Then I saw this:
http://i.imgur.com/whNn7.jpg
Or, is so unimaginable these
Put me down for unimaginable.
They don't see the American
They don't see the American people or their representatives as the source of their legitimacy. Just a milk cow to be managed.
One point that amuses me is
One point that amuses me is that people have been bitching about State Dep. never doing anything, and when they do they all bitch twice as loud. This is still a doable mission, if a split Libya is an acceptable outcome. The oil in the east.
PS: I sure wish tea Party
PS: I sure wish tea Party visitor would make a nick, makes it easier to follow. Because you have a lot of points. The Tea Party is very close to anarchism. Read William Morris, a 18th century industrialist.
" This is still a doable
" This is still a doable mission, if a split Libya is an acceptable outcome. The oil in the east."
The oil in the East. Well, can you forgive Bush now?
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Just a technical note: the
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Fully concur with your point
Fully concur with your point 1.
I've quoted you and linked to you here: http://www.cnas.org/blogs/abumuqawama/2011/03/random-bits.html
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