Barack And Joe's Excellent Adventure
Joe Biden spoke at a fundraiser last night. He came up with many new Bidenisms. But this one is my favorite, in reference to the Navy Seal operation that killed Bin Laden:
“You can go back 500 years. You cannot find a more audacious plan. Never knowing for certain. We never had more than a 48 percent probability that he was there.”
I'm a big fan of the Bin Laden operation and think it was plenty audacious. And I'm pleased that President Obama ordered the Navy Seals to do it (although I'd hope any President would do the same given the high probability of success and the nature of the target). But can you find a more audacious plan than this in the last 500 years? I think you might be able to find a few dozen from World War II alone, right?
I can't help but find Biden charming but he's messing up how you brag about your own administration. Let other people hype your accomplishments while you sound steadfast and humble. Bragging about your exploits and going over the top actually diminishes your accomplishments.
- Comment (36)
- · Quote
- · UnfollowFollow (1)
- Pages:
- 1
- 2
Comments:
Sep '11
Re: Barack And Joe's Excellent Adventure
CandE: Calling on EJHill! Please produce a depiction of Obama's hopefully audacious whacking of Bin Laden. Recommend using the picture of that one general who crossed that one river that one time to win something important:
-E · 2 hours ago
You cluelessly divisive, hurtful, mean-spirited Rethuglican. Washington was exploiting those poor soldiers to cross the Delaware River in order to get to Trenton for Christmas Dinner.
Why, that's nothing--nothing at all--compared with the sheer audacity of sitting in a comfy chair, 8,000 miles away, and sending somebody else into harm's way. While posing for a photographer.
Mar '11
Re: Barack And Joe's Excellent Adventure
Instugator
They didn't have to go to the President to get permission. I am biased, but my Reagan example is closer. · 6 minutes ago
Are you sure about that? I vaguely recall reading somewhere that there was concern that the shootdown might expose the fact that we were reading the Japanese encrypted communications. There was some debate as to whether getting Yamamoto was worth the risk of losing the intelligence source if they switched codes as a result.
Sep '11
Re: Barack And Joe's Excellent Adventure
~Paules: A. Grant outflanks Vicksburg.
B. The US Navy surprises the Japanese at Midway.
C. Lee divides his forces at Chancellorsville
D. The retreat of the Nez Perce (still taught at West Point).
E. The Battle of Brecourt Manor (also still taught at West point)
F. Rorke's Drift
G. US bushwhacks Admiral Yamamoto at Rabul (first airborne assassination in history).
H. Skorzany's rescue of Mussolini
I. The raid on Taranto Harbor (a precursor to Pearl Harbor).
J. The Battle of Ascalon (1200 Christian knights defeat an army of 50K Egyptians, AD 1099)
K. The Six Day War
L. German airborne assault of Crete (May 1941)
M. Agincourt, Crecy, and Poitiers
To name just a few. · 4 hours ago
Nice list--but Biden said, "go back 500 years." Which would appear to put Ascalon, Agincourt, etc., a bit out of scope.
Mar '11
Re: Barack And Joe's Excellent Adventure
http://blog.usni.org/2009/10/12/the-solomons-campaign-operation-vengeance-the-shootdown-of-yamamoto/
On a sweltering April 17th, Maj John W. Mitchell, USAAF found himself looking across the table at Admiral Marc Mitscher and all the “senior leadership” present on Guadalcanal that day. In the close confines of the Admiral’s tent he read again the message marked ‘TOP SECRET’ and signed by the Secretary of the Navy himself, Frank Knox:
SQUADRON 339 P-38 MUST AT ALL COSTS REACH AND DESTROY. PRESIDENT ATTACHES EXTREME IMPORTANCE TO MISSION.
Sep '10
Re: Barack And Joe's Excellent Adventure
Nice suggestions by others. Let me add Operation Entebbe. One hundred commandos flown 2500 miles to rescue over 100 hostages was a bit more audacious.
Aug '10
Re: Barack And Joe's Excellent Adventure
Jeff Richter: http://blog.usni.org/2009/10/12/the-solomons-campaign-operation-vengeance-the-shootdown-of-yamamoto/
On a sweltering April 17th, Maj John W. Mitchell, USAAF found himself looking across the table at Admiral Marc Mitscher and all the “senior leadership” present on Guadalcanal that day. In the close confines of the Admiral’s tent he read again the message marked ‘TOP SECRET’ and signed by the Secretary of the Navy himself, Frank Knox:
SQUADRON 339 P-38 MUST AT ALL COSTS REACH AND DESTROY. PRESIDENT ATTACHES EXTREME IMPORTANCE TO MISSION. · 44 minutes ago
I stand corrected.
Jun '10
Re: Barack And Joe's Excellent Adventure
Wouldn't you love to have Biden say all this is a meeting with Benjamin Netanyahu. He might find himself on his back with Bibi standing on his chest, reminding him that leader of the Entebbe raid, Lt. Col. Yonatan Netanyahu (Bibi's brother), was the only Israeli commando killed. Unlike Obama, he led from in front.
Biden is a silly man.
Dec '10
Re: Barack And Joe's Excellent Adventure
1) The Battle of Midway has to be at or close to the top of any list of audacious military operations. The the outcome of the War in the Pacific hung in the balance.
2) D-Day.
3) Washington crossing the Delaware.
4) Inchon.
4) Linebacker I and II during the Vietnam War. The area around Hanoi - called Route Package VI - was defended by the the most concentrated and effective air defense system ever assembled. The North Vietnamese had an extremely well integrated radar network with radar controlled triple-A and Surface-to-Air missiles (SAMs). They also had an effective force of MiGs with 16 aces. For any aircraft flying over Route Pack 6, the skies were always broken to overcast with flak and supersonic telephone poles (SAMs).
The most audacious strategy of Linebacker was to use the B-52's over RP 6. B-52's were an irreplaceable strategic weapon and the decision to fly them over North Vietnam was gutsy. The B-52 losses were high compared to their number, but, if the missions had gone badly, the losses could have been catastrophic to our strategic capabilities.
Re: Barack And Joe's Excellent Adventure
Israel's capture of Adolf Eichmann.
Feb '12
Re: Barack And Joe's Excellent Adventure
The Entebbe raid and the capture of Eichmann fit the bill. Most of the others mentioned are battles. The failed Tehran raid of 1980 would also fit the bill and much more so had it have been a success. And there's the rub Carter and Obama- two failures. It was the Navy Seals who made it a success. Who dares wins..
Sep '10
Re: Barack And Joe's Excellent Adventure
My favorite is the invasion of Libya by an American named Eaton during the Barbary wars. Overland from Cairo with 400 extremely motley mercenaries and very little government approval. The emir of Tripoli decided to settle with the US with this audacious and somewhat wacky plan.
Mar '11
Re: Barack And Joe's Excellent Adventure
After some further thought, I'm inclined to put the Doolittle raid very close to the top of the "audacity" charts.
1. While I'm sure there's a certain level of mythmaking to the story, it seems that it was an idea that actually came from the President - "I want to bomb Japan, you guys figure out how to make it happen".
2: Putting land-based bombers on an aircraft carrier and floating them to 400 miles off the coast of Japan? [Yes, I know they didn't actually get that close, but that was the plan]. That's audacity!
3: Risking the loss of one of our very precious and few fleet Aircraft carriers and associated escort ships for what was for the most part a propaganda story? Audacity!
4: Risking that carrier at a time when we were getting our butts kicked all over the Pacific [Read the daily newspapers from January & February 1942 sometime, when you see the day-to-day events reported without the benefit of hindsight. We were losing, and losing badly!] That is audacity!
Sep '10
Re: Barack And Joe's Excellent Adventure
Our Ricocheters have brought to mind some of the greatest--most audacious!--plans of the last 500 years. Here are a few more:
Nelson's attack at Trafalgar
The Great Escape from Stalag Luft III
The Dams Raid
The Brecourt Manor Assault
Feb '12
Re: Barack And Joe's Excellent Adventure
While we're at it why not add the audacious Romanian Ploesti Raid of 1943.. That was hell.
Jun '10
Re: Barack And Joe's Excellent Adventure
I disagree about the killing of bin Laden -- our intelligence in Waziristan and RC East have been set back ten years because of it -- but Biden should at least acknowledge Iraqi Freedom. I mean... he voted for it. It can't be that far from his mind.
Oh, wait.
Feb '12
Re: Barack And Joe's Excellent Adventure
The ol' soft shoe in Biden time..
I'm bidin' my time,
'Cause that's the kinda guy I'm.
While other folks grow dizzy
I keep busy
Bidin' my time
Next year, next year,
I'll just keep on nappin' -
This year, this year,
I'll just keep on nappin'
And bidin' my time,
'Cause that's the kinda guy I'm.
There's no regrettin'
When I'm settin'
Bidin' my time.