10 Ways Obama Botched The Aftermath
Toby Harnden has an interesting list over at The Telegraph of the "10 ways Barack Obama botched the aftermath of the masterful operation to kill Osama bin Laden." They include everything from "To say that bin Laden was armed and hiding behind a wife being used as a human shied was an unforgiveable embellishment" and "Too much information was released, too quickly and a lot of it was wrong" to "Obama tried to claim too much credit" and "Obama's rhetoric lurched from jingoistic to moralistic."
Triggering a torture debate was another unforced error. Toby concludes:
All this has meant that this week’s media story has become one about Obama and the White House more than one about the SEALs, the CIA and what killing bin Laden means. That’s exactly the wrong way round.
I'd said earlier that I'm so pleased with how well this Osama mission went that I wouldn't care if President Obama gloated for a while. But man has this White House's handling of everything since the mission been less than stellar.
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Jan '11
Re: 10 Ways Obama Botched The Aftermath
Rumor has it that the Detroit Tigers shut out the New York Yankees last night, 4 to 0 in Detroit.
I call on Major League Baseball to put an embargo on all pictures and videos of that game, as viewing them might enflame irrational Yankee fans and cause incidents against the Tigers the next time they visit New York.
These obnoxious highlight videos are totally gratuitous for a real sports fan. Reading the news and the boxscore is quite sufficient. To mix sports metaphors, Detroit doesn't need to "spike the ball."
Pictures and videos of the shutout may also make the Yankees play harder in the future, harming the Tigers' prospects of victory.
Edited on May 5, 2011 at 5:40pmMay '10
Re: 10 Ways Obama Botched The Aftermath
It seems to me this administration always zigs when it should zag. It seems to me the politically shrewd thing would be to have the narrative written before the operation. The problem is that they spent too much time patting each other on the back and not putting together a coherent narrative. Of course, the media is all too obliging to report this as anything but a triumphant victory for the Chosen One.
I hope this doesn't violate the CoC against conspiracy theories but I think I'm OK since we often play "if it were a Republican president ... " Let me preface this next part by saying that I think the President did the right thing. But, in light of the information leaking out, I need the President's supporters to explain to me how this was anything but a targeted assassination of foreign citizen on foreign soil. Again I believe it was justified and the right thing to do, but if this were President Bush, the cries that we killed an unarmed man on foreign soil without permission from the foreign government (not to mention without the UN's blessing) would be deafening.
Re: 10 Ways Obama Botched The Aftermath
The domestic situation is for them (and us) grim, and they are on the run. They have to mine this for all that it is worth. Desperation produces unforced errors.
Edited on May 5, 2011 at 5:57pmDec '10
Re: 10 Ways Obama Botched The Aftermath
This admin is typically so busy trying to package and sell Obama and control the narrative that it discounts, neglects, and ignores the truth.
Indications are this decision was forced on Obama by a very recent Wikileaks disclosure that we knew the nom de guerre of one of the couriers. The fear was Osama would bolt soon if he was hiding in the compound.
Obama has been procrastinating and dithering for many months on making a decision to hit the compound. His hand was forced by the Wikileaks disclosure. His political handlers had no time to plan and package this event. They have been winging it and making it up as they go. It shows.
Jul '10
Re: 10 Ways Obama Botched The Aftermath
It's hard to "spike the ball" after You've fumbled it.
Jun '10
Re: 10 Ways Obama Botched The Aftermath
Snatching defeat from the jaws of victory?
Apr '11
Re: 10 Ways Obama Botched The Aftermath
Let me offer a hypothesis (with no source other than my gut). Obama was forced into this action kicking & screaming by folks outside his core circle. When the deed was done, his trusted advisers were the only ones in on how to present to the public and the results were as confused and distorted as any oher thing Obama has done on his own.
Mar '11
Re: 10 Ways Obama Botched The Aftermath
If you count Hillary Clinton and Leon Panetta outside his core circle, I agree with the hypothesis (James also alluded to it in the most recent Podcast).
Toby Harnden is the best UK commentator on the US (the only person I disagree with him about is Sarah Palin - lol).
But I doubt that he is correct about the US having informed Pakistan, in some way, before the Op - we will probably never know. Well, maybe they got airspace clearance, without saying what they needed it for?
Apr '11
Re: 10 Ways Obama Botched The Aftermath
@David Williamson, no I don't consider Hillary and Panetta part of Obama's inner circle. Not by a long shot.
Apr '11
Re: 10 Ways Obama Botched The Aftermath
We (the taxpayers of this nation) have paid a lot for this moment. We're entitled to see the pictures if we want to. I see this as more of the same - paying a high price and receiving little- that the federal government specializes in. To be aloof and condescending is just icing on the cake.
Dec '10
Re: 10 Ways Obama Botched The Aftermath
I really don't have a huge problem with the idea of dispatching a team to kill OBL rather than take him alive, although I believe he would have been a fantastic intelligence asset had he been brought back alive.
But: it's idiotic for the President who ordered the shooting of an unarmed man to turn around and say he can't release the picture of that dead man because "that's not who we are." Guess what, Mr. President? We also aren't people who shoot unarmed men.
So, Mr. President, which do you suppose is more outrageous to the sympathizers of OBL: releasing a photo of him dead, or shooting him dead in the first place? And will refusing to do the former really undo the outrage caused by the latter?
Jan '11
Re: 10 Ways Obama Botched The Aftermath
Doesn't anyone in the Obama circle remember Watergate? A 18 minute gap in June 1972, now a 20-25 minute gap in May 2011. History repeats. I do believe this is the beginning of the end.
Re: 10 Ways Obama Botched The Aftermath
My fave tweet of the day (originally from "lilindian"):
Osama got his 72 virgins; Obama's got his 72 versions.
Jan '11
Re: 10 Ways Obama Botched The Aftermath
Surprise, surprise. The Pakistanis are mad at us anyway, no matter how much we solicit their feelings. So ... why ... are ... we ... bothering?
Mar '11
Re: 10 Ways Obama Botched The Aftermath
I think that when confronted with a plan by the military Obama approved it for fear of being blamed, as Slick Willie was, for passing up an opportunity to get Bin Laden.
I expect when the euphoria has settled down the military will be punished for putting him in a corner.