He Is Who We Thought He Was
The Campaign Spot
Jim Geraghty Reporting
Jackson Diehl's column in today's Washington Post is thoroughly enjoyable for those of us who did not think that Obama's election would trigger the dawn of an era of foreign-policy nirvana.
<<< Now comes the interesting part: when it starts to become evident that Bush did not create rogue states, terrorist movements, Middle Eastern blood feuds or Russian belligerence — and that shake-ups in U.S. diplomacy, however enlightened, might not have much impact on them . . .
Obama sent a conciliatory public message to Iranians, and the United States joined in a multilateral proposal for new negotiations on its nuclear program. The regime responded by announcing another expansion of its uranium enrichment facility and placing an American journalist on trial for espionage. Obama told Iraqis that he would, as long promised, use troop withdrawals to pressure the government to take over responsibility for the country. Since he made that announcement, violence in Iraq has steadily increased.
Obama is not the first president to discover that facile changes in U.S. policy don't crack long-standing problems. Some of his new strategies may produce results with time. Yet the real test of an administration is what it does once it realizes that the quick fixes aren't working — that, say, North Korea and Iran have no intention of giving up their nuclear programs, with or without dialogue, while Russia remains determined to restore its dominion over Georgia. In other words, what happens when it's no longer George W. Bush's fault? That's what the next 100 days will tell us. >>>
Having said that, where would the American people get the idea that all it would take was a new president with his hand outstretched in friendship? Could it have been, say, the editors of the Post when they endorsed Obama?
<<< But Mr. Obama, as anyone who reads his books can tell, also has a sophisticated understanding of the world and America's place in it. He, too, is committed to maintaining U.S. leadership and sticking up for democratic values, as his recent defense of tiny Georgia makes clear. We hope he would navigate between the amoral realism of some in his party and the counterproductive cocksureness of the current administration, especially in its first term. On most policies, such as the need to go after al-Qaeda, check Iran's nuclear ambitions and fight HIV/AIDS abroad, he differs little from Mr. Bush or Mr. McCain. But he promises defter diplomacy and greater commitment to allies. His team overstates the likelihood that either of those can produce dramatically better results, but both are certainly worth trying. >>>
Besides my usual "all statements from Barack Obama come with an expiration date" mantra, I'm finding myself quoting former Arizona Cardinals coach Dennis Green, after his legendary post-game meltdown when his team came close to beating a much-touted Chicago Bears team, but fell short: "They were who we thought they were!"
As we see Obama accepting Chavez's anti-American book with a smile, as we see him traveling around the world and apologizing incessantly, as we see him starting a trade war with Mexico, as we see his Department of Homeland Security demonizing conservatives, as we see him bowing to the Saudi king, as we see him taking a meat cleaver to the defense budget, as we see him doubling already-enormous deficits . . . we find, he is who we thought he was.
campaignspot.nationalreview.com |
