So far, Mr. Obama’s foreign policy has been a mess. Yes, he does have a few successes. He ordered (after massive prodding) the attack that killed Bin Laden. Which ticks off Islamists, but, to hell with them. He got Anwar Al Awlaki (which has gotten him attacked by people on the left and right for targeting an American citizen. The attack and support of this is bipartisan. I applaud Obama). He’s drone-striked tons of Islamists. He’s done a good job in ignoring and playing tough with the nutjob leaders of North Korea, refusing to play their game (which might just be because Obama can’t be bothered). And then, um, er, well. Seriously, the only A given to Obama in 2013 by the Washington Post was for his dealings with China. Yet, as Charles Krauthammer notes, Obama just got punked by Putin regarding Asia, especially China. Iran is playing a game, stretching things out on their way to building the nuclear bomb. He’s annoyed our allies. His Libyan adventure is a mess. He made the US look weak regarding Syria. He’s even managed to annoy Canada. Seriously, Canada? There’s so much fail it’s hard to know what to include in the start of this post and keep it short. Even the NY Times’ Ross Douthat can’t find much to talk about as a success. Cue the Neverending Campaign
(Yahoo News) President Obama will use his commencement speech at West Point this week to defend his handling of an ever-widening array of foreign policy crises and to outline top national security goals for his fast-shrinking time in office, officials say.
Under fire from Republicans who accuse him of being a weak president overseeing a dramatic and dangerous American retreat from the world stage, the president who ordered the death of Osama bin Laden but has been powerless to stop the bloodbath in Syria will argue that he has struck the right balance – and will continue to do so.
“You will hear the president discuss how the United States will use all the tools in our arsenal without over-reaching,†a White House official said on condition of anonymity.
“He will lay out why the right policy is one that is both interventionist and internationalist, but not isolationist or unilateral,†the official said.
I bet this year’s West Point graduates are thrilled to have to listen to this whiny dreck, which will certainly include lots of blamestorming, and sound very much like a Typical Obama Campaign Speech, rather than hear something uplifting and inspirational from their Commander In Chief.
As far as “over-reaching” goes, it matters little, because Obama either fails to reach or reaches wrongly. Kinda like trying to shake everyone’s hand with your foot. The latter is more common.
After that, he’s going on a European tour, attempting to Look Presidential, but, so far, previous trips have show little reward. Which is what you can say about most of his foreign policy. He’s long on words, short on action. This sounds like one of his famous “pivots”, meant to distract from other affairs, rather than a serious continuation of policy that works.
Days after the speech, he heads to Europe for a trip heavily defined by his standoff with Russian President Vladimir Putin over Ukraine. Obama will reaffirm America’s ties to the continent in a speech in Warsaw, then attend a rich-nation summit in Brussels from which Putin has been banned.
He can speak about it all he wants, but, really, his best times dealing with European leaders has been taking selfies at Mandela’s funeral. Then he’ll attend a memorial in Normandy for the 70th anniversary of D-Day. Which he’ll surely make about himself.
Perhaps he can explain to the West Point grads how he’s failed to follow through on all the problems at the Veteran’s Administration. More likely, he’ll ask for $3 or whatever they can spare. On the bright side, at least these college grads have decent jobs in their immediate future.
Crossed at Right Wing News.
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