When it comes to choosing that one side or the other, the brooding Hamlet- like, Obama, feels that perhaps he has some semblance of luck on his side if he waits for events to unfurl, until he finally does decide to make a decision. And this brooding president, who is more actor than he is a leader, has been wringing his hands since August when General McChrystal gave his recommendation to Obama, to in effect, " fish or cut bait. ''
Meanwhile, Obama is following his campaign's play book's cardinal rule, which is to divert the attention of both the media and the public from his equivocating, by throwing a red herring out there, which is his decision to move the trials of terrorists housed in Guantanamo to New York City. Plus, like the magician that he is, Obama has quickly left town for China and Japan, on his so called Asian- tour, in order to avoid being pressed by the public or press on either issue- the detainee trials, or the Afghanistan decision.
But one thing is certain- there is certainly nothing that important in Asia to force this president to embark on that 8 day tour. He is leaving the country, while hanging out there both troublesome and unfinished, are not only the Afghanistan decision, the detainee trial now moved to New York, but also the disintegrating economy, the high unemployment rate, and another task he delayed of developing an innovative plan to create jobs, plus the huge health care battle is still raging in Congress. Also pressing, although Obama states it is only a side- issue, is how to spin that stimulus debacle, which not only has failed to deliver, but is filled with errors so blatant, it risks the label of grossly incompetent being attached to its creator.
If you ask why this magic slide show by Obama is being launched at this time, it is enlightening to know that he is battling strong and constant criticism which he is trying to fend off. This criticism of Obama is that he is too weak, too indecisive, too eager, and too quick to placate both sides on any issue from fractious elements within this country to those abroad. For example, he is attacked by the progressives on Health Care, for not supporting a robust public option; and from the Democratic Blue- Dogs, for attempting to pass one because of the exorbitant cost.
Even while on this trip, his twentieth since he became president, the Chinese see Obama as weak, for offering them a plum concession when it wasn't requested by them, the concession being, that Obama refused to see the Dali Lama when he visited the United States. This is an untenable position for Obama to be in, because when a borrower, the United States' president, approaches his banker, the Chinese, who see this country and president as a poor financial risk and therefore a declining world power, with a weak and indecisive leader, that leader had better appear strong and confident, and not subservient.
Still, the most interesting magic slide show of Obama, is his moving the detainee terrorist trials to New York, to cover his weakness and indecisiveness in handling Afghanistan. Candidate Obama was adamant that the real war that should be fought was not in Iraq, but in Afghanistan. He sent additional troops there to carry out his agenda this spring.
In addition, this summer Obama requested his general, General Stanley A. McChrystal, to further analyse the situation. This General urged the deployment of additional troops to protect the populace from the Taliban, and insisted that this surge would involve nation building- a process which might take at least 20 years to accomplish and involve billions of U.S. dollars.
Meanwhile, the battle was becoming bloodier and increasing number of troops were dying. In addition, the country's leader had what the opposition claimed was a staged election, and when Obama called for another, the oppositional candidate declined, saying a new election was fruitless thus leaving the disputed President Hami Karzi still in power. This left the United States supporting a leader that the populace of his country did not support. In addition, the U.S. were forced to pay money to Karzi 's relatives to insure that our soldiers had safe passage for their convoys.
In essence, when the country has a leader who its own people do not accept, it is impossible for nation building to occur, because there is no sense of permanence and safety in the country. This situation would be a source of continuous instability in Afghanistan- leaving the United States metamorphic building a house of bricks, while the instability of this country caused by being ruled by an illegitimate ruler, would tear down that same house brick by brick.
This fact was released by the Ambassador to Afghanistan, Karl W. Eikenberry, a former retired army general who had previously worked for the Clintons. His comments were released in what was a torrent of leaks while Obama met with advisers. This prompted The Secretary of Defense, Robert Gates, to bemoan these leaks, and warn that if they were filtering out of the Department of Defense, the person responsible would lose their job.
But there were so many leaks and these leaks are being released so quickly, that most feel that certainly some were approved by Obama and his staff, especially those from " The leave Afghanistan-Joe Biden Camp, " in contrast to those who supported McChrystal 's plea for additional troops, that is if the U.S. really wanted to do the job right, according to this General.
Therefore, to re-focus attention away from Afghanistan, Obama is diverting attention to the detainee trials to buy time. There are other political benefits for Obama in moving the trials to New York, besides these trials being a tool to divert attention from Afghanistan. Here are a few of these reasons Obama is using them as a diversion:
One, is to cement Obama's over-seas popularity by touting himself world- wide, as the promoter of the rule of law, who will finally net out punishment to terrorists, in the jurisdiction that those crimes occurred. Remember he must do something, even if it is nothing but smoke and mirrors to prove to the Nobel Prize committee that he is worthy, since they awarded him that prize for what he will do in the future on the Afghanistan issue.
A second reason is to re-visit and high-light the mistakes of the Bush administration and their focus on water- boarding and torture. Obama knows that every actor who wishes to play the part of the protagonists needs an antagonist. And he continues to use the retired president as his foil on both foreign and domestic matters.
A third benefit is to divert world -wide attention from the fact that he is not likely to close Guantanamo when promised. He has already fired a counsel, as a sacrificial lamb and as a ploy to show that he up to speed on that problem, when he is not.
A fourth benefit is that this trial may take years to conclude, and become a circus, where the traitors espouse their beliefs, and defend their positions. Every Roman Emperor knew that when economic times were perilous and food was scarce, there were always those gory but entertaining human gladiator circuses in the Coliseum, to divert the attention of the crowds. This legal circus could go on for years, perhaps as Obama anticipated, and he continues to hope that they will also divert U.S. citizens and the media from their obsession with the 10.2% unemployment rate.
For those who are silly enough to believe that he is doing this for truth, justice, and the American way, there are impediments to indulging in that naivete. These include :
1-- These terrorists already confessed and were already scheduled for military trial, so why move them at all ?
2-- These terrorists were not read their Miranda rights, they were tortured, they were entitled to a speedy trial within 90 days and now they are being tried 8 years later, all of which are grounds for a dismissal in a civilian court, which will give them rights not granted in military tribunals.
3-- Both Eric Holder and the President have already come out and said they will be found guilty and will be put to death or held forever, which again could be a ground for dismissal, with the defense insisting that these men were prejudicing the jury.
4--Although they have safe-guards for protecting sensitive data, there is a small chance that sources could be revealed.
5--There trials could cause further changes in trial laws benefiting defendants and making it easier to win their cases, and therefore serve as precedents for future U.S. civilian defendants to cite.
In conclusion, Obama is using these trials of terrorists in New York, as a diversion primarily to divert media and and public attention for his indecision on Afghanistan. However, it also diverts attention away from the fact that he will not close Guantanamo when he promised. Also it highlights the torture policies of the former president, George Bush, thus setting up the Republicans and the former president as adversaries. This was a old campaign ploy of Obama called " us against them." In addition, if the trial becomes raucous and drawn out, it may draw in the media, and dominate the news cycle and pull them away from discussing a 17.5 % total unemployment rate, when you end up adding the under- employed and the discouraged to the 10.2% number.
This angst driven president is now polling 49% in the polls indicating that Americans are getting tired of Obama's lack of placing American priorities first, starting many projects and finishing none, wasting time away from the office by preening for the media in excessive newscasts, or engaging in the pandering to over-seas interest on a global stage.
In short, Obama is not just failing at exceeding expectations as he promised as a candidate, but he is unable to meet minimums standards. And no amount of diversionary tactics, whether they be smoke, mirrors, or magic, can continue to fool the public, who have wised up and are becoming increasingly angry and disillusioned. Perhaps it is time for Obama to sit down at his desk, and finish what is on it, instead of promising to walk and chew gum at the same time, and do everything. If he fails to do this, perhaps in 3 years he won't have a desk and office chair to sit down on, at least not in the '' White House. "
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