For once, it really does seem to be messaging. I’ll assume for the sake of argument that within Operation Odyssey Dawn the lines of command are clear and smooth. British missiles hitting a building in one of his “residential” compounds hardly qualify as proof of an assassination attempt, as there is every possibility that various facilities serve purposes other than those advertised, cf. “Baby Milk Factory”.
I wanted a No-Fly Zone, so I won’t shellack the President for going along with one, and in fact I wanted it far earlier than it came. I’l let that go too, for now.
If the president had gotten ahead of this and said that American involvement will be limited in scope and duration to a “tip of the spear” penetration and suppression of the air defense infrastructre, with pre-clearance to blast any Libyan jets strafing civilians in the streets, that would have been helpful. I do not have trouble accepting that regime change in Libya is on a diplomatic/economic track (i.e. special forces will get it done next week rather than bombers this week), and that the military component currently directed by the US is a far more limited endeavor.
After all, many of the President’s usual critics insist that military deployments be subject to condition-based decision points, that the mission be clearly defined before embarking, and that the mission not be allowed to creep from either its original or authorized limits.
Isn’t that what the President has done?
I’m not going soft on Obammunism, but in this case especially, while we have committed forces to a mission, I’ll try to give credit where
due and offer my criticism in as constructive a manner as possible.
I view the main flaw in the execution of this policy to be an utter failure to communicate clearly. I don’t often reach into his words to search for the best possible interpretation, but I do find substance in it, just this once. Pity it’s so hard to hear.
