Obama has nearly decimated al Qaeda: Why doesn't he brag about it?

[Lakhota]

By Michael Tomasky

Obama’s Missing Bravado

Obama has nearly decimated al Qaeda. Why doesn’t he brag about it? Michael Tomasky on liberals’ squeamishness at thumping their chests—and the endless victory lap that Bush would have taken.

The immediate political question raised by the successful drone attack that took out Anwar al-Awlaki is simple. How much credit will Barack Obama get for this? He ordered renewed drone attacks in Yemen earlier this year, and now, we see clear results. But I doubt Obama will derive much political benefit, for one obvious reason and one reason that is less obvious but that reflects something more enduring in our political culture.

When that SEAL team nailed Osama bin Laden, Obama got about a five-point bounce out of it, but it washed away as quickly as a wave on a beach. The conventional wisdom said, well, it’s the economy. People are more concerned about the unemployment rate. It also happened as the debt-ceiling crisis was starting to build, and Washington was more obsessed with it. So the conventional wisdom wasn’t necessarily wrong.

But it also wasn’t the whole story. The fuller explanation reflects differences in the emotional and psychological make-up of liberals and conservatives. Conservatives are far more eager to thump their chests about these things. Liberals, from Obama to Hillary Clinton to the liberal foreign-policy gurus at the think tanks to your average person, find it a little unseemly.

More: Obama’s Missing Bravado

Obama is a quiet warrior...

 

[CentristFiasco]

By Michael Tomasky

Obama’s Missing Bravado

Obama has nearly decimated al Qaeda. Why doesn’t he brag about it? Michael Tomasky on liberals’ squeamishness at thumping their chests—and the endless victory lap that Bush would have taken.

The immediate political question raised by the successful drone attack that took out Anwar al-Awlaki is simple. How much credit will Barack Obama get for this? He ordered renewed drone attacks in Yemen earlier this year, and now, we see clear results. But I doubt Obama will derive much political benefit, for one obvious reason and one reason that is less obvious but that reflects something more enduring in our political culture.

When that SEAL team nailed Osama bin Laden, Obama got about a five-point bounce out of it, but it washed away as quickly as a wave on a beach. The conventional wisdom said, well, it’s the economy. People are more concerned about the unemployment rate. It also happened as the debt-ceiling crisis was starting to build, and Washington was more obsessed with it. So the conventional wisdom wasn’t necessarily wrong.

But it also wasn’t the whole story. The fuller explanation reflects differences in the emotional and psychological make-up of liberals and conservatives. Conservatives are far more eager to thump their chests about these things. Liberals, from Obama to Hillary Clinton to the liberal foreign-policy gurus at the think tanks to your average person, find it a little unseemly.

More: Obama’s Missing Bravado

Obama is a quiet warrior...

It's because he wasn't earned his bragging rights yet... The economy is still a mess.

 

[Lakhota]

John Bolton Does His Best To Downplay Obama’s Killing Of Awlaki | ThinkProgress

 

[Lakhota]

It's because he wasn't earned his bragging rights yet... The economy is still a mess.

Oh, he earned it. It takes time to fix the Bush holocaust.

 

[Amelia]

Obama doesn't want to give back his peace prize.

 

[ladyliberal]

I'm sure he would "brag about it", if he saw a political advantage to it without a corresponding policy disadvantage. I can think of a few reasons not to brag:

1) National security. Some of Bush's more inflammatory rhetoric (EG, "dead or alive") was said to encourage reprisals against Americans, or to provoke our enemies. Obama might be trying to avoid this sort of thing. Indeed, my understanding is that the US does not officially acknowledge drone strikes, so it seems that national security policy ties Obama's hands substantially in admitting most of the successes.

2) Waiting for the right time. Obama isn't running intensely for reelection yet. He may be merely biding his time before deciding when and whether to campaign on this.

3) Avoiding appearance of bragging. It might be that actively running on his counter-terrorism record might be seen as politicizing a military matter. This is dangerous territory, particularly for a Democratic president who is presiding over major Defense cuts.

4) Anticipating future terrorism events. Recently, the US has seemed to be winning the counter-terrorism battle. However, it's impossible to reduce the chances of a deadly terrorist attack to zero. If Obama plays up counter-terrorism, he makes US policy (and his own approval) that much more vulnerable to terrorism. The Iranian hostage crisis already proved that foreign extremists can manipulate US presidential politics.

There are a few other possibilities, but they don't strike me as likely. Perhaps Obama has moral objections to politicizing counter-terrorism, or perhaps he worries that targeting US citizens convicted of no crimes for assassination will be inherently politically unpopular.

 

[GoneBezerk]

As usual dumbfuck liberals talk out both ends in support of Obamination.

Many of the CIA and military programs that are bearing fruit now started under Bush, it just took time to find the assholes around the world to kill them.

The UBL courier that led the CIA to UBL's compound was being followed since 2003 but he made a mistake using a monitored cell phone in 2008 which led to them tracking him down near UBL's compound.

The CIA and military doing things to terrorists in GITMO and other "nice places" around the world led to the information on the courier and from there. Intel gathering takes time, it doesn't happen overnight because typically captured terrorists aren't willing to give up their friends.

Oh, the liberals that called for Bush being thrown in jail over wiretaps don't seem to care Obaminationa is doing the same wiretaps....

 

[Lakhota]

I'm sure he would "brag about it", if he saw a political advantage to it without a corresponding policy disadvantage. I can think of a few reasons not to brag:

1) National security. Some of Bush's more inflammatory rhetoric (EG, "dead or alive") was said to encourage reprisals against Americans, or to provoke our enemies. Obama might be trying to avoid this sort of thing. Indeed, my understanding is that the US does not officially acknowledge drone strikes, so it seems that national security policy ties Obama's hands substantially in admitting most of the successes.

2) Waiting for the right time. Obama isn't running intensely for reelection yet. He may be merely biding his time before deciding when and whether to campaign on this.

3) Avoiding appearance of bragging. It might be that actively running on his counter-terrorism record might be seen as politicizing a military matter. This is dangerous territory, particularly for a Democratic president who is presiding over major Defense cuts.

4) Anticipating future terrorism events. Recently, the US has seemed to be winning the counter-terrorism battle. However, it's impossible to reduce the chances of a deadly terrorist attack to zero. If Obama plays up counter-terrorism, he makes US policy (and his own approval) that much more vulnerable to terrorism. The Iranian hostage crisis already proved that foreign extremists can manipulate US presidential politics.

There are a few other possibilities, but they don't strike me as likely. Perhaps Obama has moral objections to politicizing counter-terrorism, or perhaps he worries that targeting US citizens convicted of no crimes for assassination will be inherently politically unpopular.

I believe that's generally the point of the OP.

 

[Lakhota]

Ninja Obama, the silent warrior: Killer of pirates and assorted al Qaeda terrorists.

 

[hortysir]

2 or 3 key members does not a decimation make

 

[Sherry]

He's a closet warrior.

 

[Charles_Main]

Ninja Obama, the silent warrior: Killer of pirates and assorted al Qaeda terrorists.

Bush killed a shit ton of Al Qaeda as well during his 2 terms. Several Key Top Leaders. Something tells me back then, You rightly credited the People doing the shooting, and not the President.

Ninja Obama my ass, all he does is give the green light, the real ninja's are US Special Forces, and guess what. They wont be voting Democrat.

 

[Chris]

By Michael Tomasky

Obama’s Missing Bravado

Obama has nearly decimated al Qaeda. Why doesn’t he brag about it? Michael Tomasky on liberals’ squeamishness at thumping their chests—and the endless victory lap that Bush would have taken.

The immediate political question raised by the successful drone attack that took out Anwar al-Awlaki is simple. How much credit will Barack Obama get for this? He ordered renewed drone attacks in Yemen earlier this year, and now, we see clear results. But I doubt Obama will derive much political benefit, for one obvious reason and one reason that is less obvious but that reflects something more enduring in our political culture.

When that SEAL team nailed Osama bin Laden, Obama got about a five-point bounce out of it, but it washed away as quickly as a wave on a beach. The conventional wisdom said, well, it’s the economy. People are more concerned about the unemployment rate. It also happened as the debt-ceiling crisis was starting to build, and Washington was more obsessed with it. So the conventional wisdom wasn’t necessarily wrong.

But it also wasn’t the whole story. The fuller explanation reflects differences in the emotional and psychological make-up of liberals and conservatives. Conservatives are far more eager to thump their chests about these things. Liberals, from Obama to Hillary Clinton to the liberal foreign-policy gurus at the think tanks to your average person, find it a little unseemly.

More: Obama’s Missing Bravado

Obama is a quiet warrior...

Why doesn't Obama brag about it?

Because he is not a stupid Republican asshole from Texas.

 

[Lakhota]

Ninja Obama my ass, all he does is give the green light, the real ninja's are US Special Forces, and guess what. They wont be voting Democrat.

Really? How do you know that?

 

[Ropey]

Because he is too smart for something so foolish. If he bragged about it and an attack came after.

Remember Bush? Obama learned.

 

[Lakhota]

Because he is too smart for something so foolish. If he bragged about it and an attack came after.

Remember Bush? Obama learned.

I agree.

 

[yidnar]

By Michael Tomasky

Obama’s Missing Bravado

Obama has nearly decimated al Qaeda. Why doesn’t he brag about it? Michael Tomasky on liberals’ squeamishness at thumping their chests—and the endless victory lap that Bush would have taken.

The immediate political question raised by the successful drone attack that took out Anwar al-Awlaki is simple. How much credit will Barack Obama get for this? He ordered renewed drone attacks in Yemen earlier this year, and now, we see clear results. But I doubt Obama will derive much political benefit, for one obvious reason and one reason that is less obvious but that reflects something more enduring in our political culture.

When that SEAL team nailed Osama bin Laden, Obama got about a five-point bounce out of it, but it washed away as quickly as a wave on a beach. The conventional wisdom said, well, it’s the economy. People are more concerned about the unemployment rate. It also happened as the debt-ceiling crisis was starting to build, and Washington was more obsessed with it. So the conventional wisdom wasn’t necessarily wrong.

But it also wasn’t the whole story. The fuller explanation reflects differences in the emotional and psychological make-up of liberals and conservatives. Conservatives are far more eager to thump their chests about these things. Liberals, from Obama to Hillary Clinton to the liberal foreign-policy gurus at the think tanks to your average person, find it a little unseemly.

More: Obama’s Missing Bravado

Obama is a quiet warrior...

he isn't decimating Al Qaeda the CIA headed by GEN Petraeus ,and Leon Panetta head of the Pentagon are using Bush doctrine to destroy them !! Obama is just a reluctant recipient of the credit because while he's out campaigning or playing golf or on vacation he's still the president . and as arrogant as he is don't you think if he was proud of the killings he would be bragging !!

 

[Lakhota]

he isn't decimating Al Qaeda the CIA headed by GEN Petraeus ,and Leon Panetta head of the Pentagon are using Bush doctrine to destroy them !! Obama is just a reluctant recipient of the credit because while he's out campaigning or playing golf or on vacation he's still the president . and as arrogant as he is don't you think if he was proud of the killings he would be bragging !!

Wrong! When Panetta took over the CIA, Obama told him to make the killing or capture of bin Laden the top priority - which he did.

Obama is whacking those evildoers that Bush ignored when he took his illegal detour into Iraq.

 

[Lakhota]

By ADAM GOLDMAN and MATT APUZZO

WASHINGTON -- U.S. intelligence indicates that the top al-Qaida bomb-maker in Yemen also died in the drone strike that killed radical cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, two U.S. officials said Friday.

Ibrahim al-Asiri is the bomb-maker linked to the bomb hidden in the underwear of a Nigerian man accused of trying to blow up a plane over Detroit on Christmas Day 2009.

Along with al-Awlaki, the attack also killed Samir Khan, the editor of the al-Qaida propaganda magazine Inspire.

Both Khan and al-Awlaki are U.S. citizens. Al-Awlaki was the target of the attack.

More: Ibrahim Al-Asiri, Bomb-Maker Linked To 2009 Christmas Day Plot, Likely Killed In Yemen Drone Strike: Officials

 

[Rozman]

By Michael Tomasky

Obama’s Missing Bravado

Obama has nearly decimated al Qaeda. Why doesn’t he brag about it? Michael Tomasky on liberals’ squeamishness at thumping their chests—and the endless victory lap that Bush would have taken.

The immediate political question raised by the successful drone attack that took out Anwar al-Awlaki is simple. How much credit will Barack Obama get for this? He ordered renewed drone attacks in Yemen earlier this year, and now, we see clear results. But I doubt Obama will derive much political benefit, for one obvious reason and one reason that is less obvious but that reflects something more enduring in our political culture.

When that SEAL team nailed Osama bin Laden, Obama got about a five-point bounce out of it, but it washed away as quickly as a wave on a beach. The conventional wisdom said, well, it’s the economy. People are more concerned about the unemployment rate. It also happened as the debt-ceiling crisis was starting to build, and Washington was more obsessed with it. So the conventional wisdom wasn’t necessarily wrong.

But it also wasn’t the whole story. The fuller explanation reflects differences in the emotional and psychological make-up of liberals and conservatives. Conservatives are far more eager to thump their chests about these things. Liberals, from Obama to Hillary Clinton to the liberal foreign-policy gurus at the think tanks to your average person, find it a little unseemly.

More: Obama’s Missing Bravado

Obama is a quiet warrior...

He has the complete and total success of the Stimulus on the economy to brag about and he does a fine job of that.The success of the Stimulus,all those shovel ready jobs and he still has the joy of blaming the prior Administration for all his failures...What's not to like.