For weeks now the crisis in Libya has hovered near the top of America
For the past 10 days, since the initiation of the no-fly zone,” the great hue and cry has been for President Obama to explain himself, and to define and defend his actions and America
At the crux of this growing debate the central issue for many seems to be, “Why are we not taking unilateral control of the situation, by whatever means necessary?”
In short, our nation has a history of policing the globe. Many of our current political leaders are clearly invested in the notion of “Act now; ask questions later…if at all.” As a result, many of the nations of the world expect us, and to be honest, when their vital interests are on the line, want us, to continue to do so. At the same time, many of our leaders, accustomed as they are to this role, can fathom no other way.
Therefore, when this President insists on gathering information, coalescing allies, and structuring a role for the United States
With that preamble serving as a backdrop, President Obama took the stage and spoke to the nation on Monday evening. From the National Defense University in Washington , DC , the President talked Libya
- What he said we would do
- What we have done
- What we will do now
- Why this matters (or should, to Americans)
"To brush aside America United States of America
Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0311/52107.html#ixzz1I3CljS9a
Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0311/52107.html#ixzz1I3CljS9a
With so much at stake, the President and his Administration began to put in place the key elements that have come to define America
- Evacuated the American embassy
- Facilitated the exit of all Americans who sought American assistance.
- Froze more than $33 billion of the Gaddafi regime’s assets.
- Joined with other nations at the United Nations Security Council, we broadened sanctions
- Imposed an arms embargo
- Created a framework for Gaddafi and those around him to be held accountable for their crimes
- Made it clear that Gaddafi had lost the confidence of his people and the legitimacy to lead, and said that he needed to step down from power.
- Ordered warships into the
- Authorized all necessary measures to protect the Libyan people, including military action to stop the killing and enforce U.N Resolution 1973
If this transition comes to pass, the US US
- Intelligence
- Logistical support
- Search & rescue assistance
- Capabilities to jam communications
- Provide assistance to Libyans who need food and medical care
- Safeguard the $33 billion in frozen assets so that it is available to the Libyan people.
Since America ’s vital interests are not at stake in Libya America
-
- A massacre would have driven thousands of additional refugees across
- The democratic impulses that are dawning across the region would be eclipsed by the darkest form of dictatorship, as repressive leaders concluded that violence is the best strategy to cling to power.
- The writ of the United Nations Security Council would have been shown to be little more than empty words, crippling that institution’s future credibility to uphold global peace and security.
- While I will never minimize the costs involved in military action, I am convinced that a failure to act in
- Our coalition would splinter
- We would likely have to put troops on the ground
- We would increase the risk of killing many civilians from the air
- The dangers faced by our troops would be far greater
- Our share of the costs would spiral
In placing the matter in perspective the President reminded that in just one month, the United States
- Worked with our international partners to mobilize a broad coalition
- Secured an international mandate to protect civilians
- Stopped an advancing army
- Prevented a massacre
- Established a no-fly zone with our allies and partners.
In further clarifying the Administration's actions, the President underscored that the US
-
- We would not put ground troops into
- We would transfer responsibility to our allies and partners.
“I’ve made it clear that I will never hesitate to use our military swiftly, decisively, and unilaterally when necessary to defend our people, our homeland, our allies and our core interests.”
The whole idea of an Obama Doctrine is a media contrivance; often as not a synonym for lazy journalism. The world is far too complex for any one statement of even any single group of statements to define the views of the POTUS. But for the purpose of this post, and from a military slant, Monday night’s speech serves as an exemplar of "The Obama Doctrine: Redefining A Call To Arms!” One can conclude that while Mr. Obama is a President who views force as a last resort, he will use it, but only after deep reflection and only under circumstances that he feels give him no other choice. He distanced himself from both Bill Clinton’s Bosnia and George W. Bush’s Iraq
I’m done; holla back!
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