The prospect of a deadly siege of the rebel stronghold in Benghazi, Libya, has produced a striking shift in tone from the Obama administration, which is now pushing for the United Nations to authorize aerial bombing of Libyan tanks and heavy artillery to try to halt the advance of forces loyal to Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi.
The administration, which remains deeply reluctant to be drawn into an armed conflict in yet another Muslim country, is nevertheless backing a resolution in the Security Council that would give countries a broad range of options for aiding the Libyan rebels, including military steps that go well beyond a no-flight zone.
Administration officials ”” who have been debating a no-flight zone for weeks ”” concluded that such a step now would be “too little, too late” for rebels who have been pushed back to Benghazi. That suggests more aggressive measures, which some military analysts have called a no-drive zone, to prevent Colonel Qaddafi from moving tanks and artillery into Benghazi.
[blockquote]The prospect of a deadly siege of the rebel stronghold in Benghazi, Libya, has produced a striking shift in tone from the Obama administration, which is now pushing for the United Nations to authorize aerial bombing of Libyan tanks and heavy artillery to try to halt the advance of forces loyal to Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi.[/blockquote]
This is nuts. The time to act was weeks ago if they were going to do it. Obama better get a declaration of war from the Congress or they should impeach him. This is the most incompetent president since Carter.
Br. Michael, President Obama seems to be operating under the idea that if he ignores the situation, it’ll somehow go away. It won’t. Yes, the time to act was weeks ago, but he dithered, and a lot of good people have died because of that. You’re right in saying that he should be impeached, but unfortunately, he hasn’t violated his oath of office. He’s the worst president since James E. Carter, and I give [i]him[/i] high marks compared to Obama.
And by the time Congress gets around to acting, it’ll be ‘all over’ in Libya.
Cennydd-Please be fair. Obama had to get his NCAA brackets done by yesterday afternoon so he could be on ESPN. Last week he had to clean up the speech on women’s history month, because those pesky sppech writers just didn’t do a high quality job. He also had to spend a good deal of time getting his golf clubs cleaned and ready for today’s outing. And I’m sure you must be aware of how hard it is to plan a vacation to Rio. Please; give the poor, overworked man a break.
2, actually he has failed and refused to enforce the emigration laws. This is a violation of his oath of office to see that the laws are faithfully enforced.
I actually share Pageantmaster’s frustration with the dithering over Libya. Lead, follow or get out of the way.
But I do understand about proper vacation planning. It often takes more time than you have, in order to do it right.
#5–Obama has “get out of the way” down to a science.
Actually, according to the Canadian writer Gwynne Dyer there is already a more than capable option in the vicinity. http://www.straight.com/article-381425/vancouver/gwynne-dyer-where-are-egyptians-when-libya-needs-them
Ross
Re the “emigration” laws reference in No. 5: This administration, whatever its considerable problems, has been the most aggressive administration in my adult lifetime (i.e., read several decades) in enforcing immigration laws and border security. If there is a failure of execution, it’s one that extends to every predecessor administration at least back to the 1950s. None of those presidents were impeached. It also suggests that federal immigration laws are desperately in need of modernization in order to more effectively encourage the immigration necessary to keep America competitive in the global economy in the 21st century and to discourage the type of immigration trends that undermine the economics and security of the United States.
As I write this, we are receiving reports that 112 Tomahawks have hit AA defense infrastructure during the night in Libya. When I heard this morning that French planes were in the air over Benghazi, it was apparent that the Americans would act substantially during the night against Command and Control targets.