The Common Ills: Barack and his 'gutless' problem

Thursday, August 21, 2014

Barack and his 'gutless' problem

CBS News reports US President Barack Obama stands accused by former CIA deputy director Mike Morell (now an on air expert for CBS News) of failing to grasp what is taking place in Iraq and the potential threats that may emerge. He calls into question the focus and intent of Barack's mission or 'mission' in Iraq.

The criticism comes as Iraq is on fire and Barack's poll numbers remain low. The criticism also comes as Barack delivers what some saw as a hard hitting speech on the beheading of a journalist only to possibly weaken his own words with the actions that followed.

Leslie Larson, Stephen Rex Brown and Larry McShane (New York Daily News) report:

The vacationing commander-in-chief, after promising a relentless hunt for the terrorist butchers of a U.S. journalist, teed off on a Martha’s Vineyard golf course just a short time later.
“Obama is more dedicated to golfing than he is to defending the nation,” sniped Liz Cheney, daughter of the former GOP vice president, via Twitter.
French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius also took a swing at Obama.
“I know in Western countries, this is vacation period,” he said, according to The Wall Street Journal. “But when people are dying, you must return from vacation.”

The criticism comes both as the US government is increasing actions in Iraq and as Barack's image is already bruised to the point that the below appeared just weeks ago on the tabloid The Globe.

Right or wrong, US presidents have a perception of acting in an excessive manner when they feel they are being seen as weak. This response can lead to more deaths and is all the more reason that Barack's increased destruction in Iraq needs to be strongly called out.

It will get worse if people do not object.

Fox News notes:

The Defense Department reported Wednesday afternoon that U.S. aircraft have conducted another 14 strikes near the Mosul Dam, which Kurdish and Iraqi forces recently re-took from Islamic militants. The latest strikes took out militants’ Humvees and other targets.

A senior U.S. official also told Fox News that military planners are weighing the possibility of sending more American forces to Iraq mainly to provide additional security “in and around Baghdad,” at the request of the State Department.

Tom Vanden Brooks (USA Today) reports:

U.S. military commanders in the Middle East are urging the Pentagon to intensify the air war against Islamic State targets in Iraq, two Defense Department officials said Wednesday.
Top officers at Central Command, which oversees military operations in the Middle East, are urging that the list of targets be expanded, according to the officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the plans.

At the Los Angeles Times, Robin Wright calls for a defined mission in Iraq.

The following community sites updated: