What is becoming clear, following the killing of Osama bin Laden, is that President Obama is fighting the war on terror in a smarter way than we had been. Two huge developments -- from the use of key intelligence that came from means that didn't include torture, to the president's decision to not release photos of a dead bin Laden -- demonstrate a much more deliberate way of fighting this war. In doing so, the president continues to make America safer.
In January, 2009, just after taking office, President Obama banned the use of torture by the CIA. It was a move previously endorsed by Leon Panetta, who would become the head of the CIA, and was also heartily endorsed by General David Petraeus, who would go on to lead the war effort in Afghanistan, and recently was himself named to head the CIA. Of ending torture, Petraeus said that the move "sends an important message to the world, as does the commitment of the United States to observe the Geneva Convention when it comes to the treatment of detainees."
VoteVets.org has been strongly against torture since the last administration started to use it. How the CIA operates directly impacts the reception that America receives around the world, and how willing others are to work with us or against us. For our troops fighting in the warzone, America's reputation means a lot.
Now, in light of the death of bin Laden, we are reminded again that torture not only hurts the U.S., but doesn't necessarily help us find and kill our enemies.
From January 2009 all the way through the finding and killing of Osama bin Laden, the U.S. did not receive any intelligence via torture. We were able to get key information for two and a half years, without torturing. And even while the U.S. was still using torture, non-torture techniques netted us some of the biggest clues we needed. For instance, the names of Osama bin Laden's couriers were obtained from Khalid Sheikh Mohammed under standard interrogation.
Mohammed did not reveal the names while being subjected to the simulated drowning technique known as waterboarding, former officials said. He identified them many months later under standard interrogation, they said, leaving it once again up for debate as to whether the harsh technique was a valuable tool or an unnecessarily violent tactic.
The most recent key decision by the president was to not release the photo of a dead bin Laden. Like the decision to ban torture, the president made the right, deliberate move. While some on Capitol Hill urged him to release the photo to put to bed conspiracy theories, Sarah Palin argued the photo should be released to somehow scare terrorists. Both arguments are short-sighted and wrong.
At a time when we have hundreds of thousands of troops in the field, now is not the time to inflame tensions in the Middle East and Afghanistan, by "spiking the football," as the president said. Doing so only endangers our troops, and never will placate those who are prone to believe conspiracy theories, anyway. We have all the evidence we need that Osama bin Laden is dead. Indeed, today, al Qaeda even confirmed the kill, with no photo released. There is simply no reason to parade around a picture of his head, like some prize, no matter how satisfying it may feel to do so.
Every American felt intense pain on 9/11. A desire for vengeance is understandable, and a picture of Osama bin Laden with a gaping bullet hole in his eye would undoubtedly bring some sense of satisfaction to many Americans. But, when we elect a president, we elect someone that we trust will not succumb to instincts like those. We elect someone who will be smart, who will be deliberate, and will do what is right for America's security, and our troops' well-being.
When it comes to the war on terror, we certainly have that in President Barack Obama. It's why Osama bin Laden is dead, and America is and continues to be made safer.
Robert P. Jones, Ph.D.: American Mythology in a Post-Bin Laden World
William Bradley: In the Shadow of bin Laden: The California Connection
http://natÂionaljournÂal.com/colÂumns/vantaÂge-point/oÂbama-s-warÂ-against-aÂl-qaida-20Â110505
Everything that Bush did hampered our ability to root out Al Queda as we should have done immediately following 9/11. He wasted our blood and our money in a pointless war, when all along the Obama approach was the way to go. This mission should have been done just this way as soon as possible after 9/11, preferably at Tora Bora. Unfortunately, by the time Tora Bora happened, Bush was only interested in invading Iraq and no longer cared about addressing the real threat to our nation.
Yeah, this is about as clear as Obama's vaunted transparency......like looking through a brick wall.
Nixon invaded Laos and ended up losing the War.
Carter attempted to rescue the Tehran hostages and the mission was canceled due to chopper malfunctions.
Reagan ran from Beirut with his tail between his legs after the marine barracks bombing and then made peace with Tehran's terrorists, helping them create Bin Laden. Then he invaded two defenseless, tropical countries to prove what a big cowboy he was.
Papa Bush could have taken out Hussein but made our troops stand down to allow the republican Guard to return to Baghdad, unmolested.
Clinton caught and jailed the first Trade Center bombers but when he attempted to hunt down and kill Bin Laden, Trent Lott & the GOP Congress threatened him with a second impeachment.
Baby Bush invades the wrong country, bankrupts the Nation and publicly decides that Bin Laden's not his concern.
Obama goes after Bin Laden and nails the es-oh-bee.
Not judging. Just saying. The facts speak for themselves and they suggest that the Right shouldn't be allowed anywhere near the controls of the US military complex.
Each time I am confronted with the cry "what about Bush?" I am left to think, if he had all the tools in place and did everything right like you want us to believe, how did he fail so badly?
Obama gets credit for doing what Bush did in defense of our country and for authorizing the killing of Osama.
Besides, even if true, this means the Bush admin had info for 6 years that they were unable to use to put the pieces together. No matter how you cut it, Bush failed. Obama succeeded. You can whinge and spin and play any mind game you want, but facts are facts and will stand on their own.
Keep watching fox. The land of lies and fantasy.
FACT: That compound in Pakistan was built around the same time that Bush DISBANDED the CIA office dedicated to finding Bin Laden ....
Sugarcoat THAT one, please??
IF BUSH GOT THE INTEL THEN WHY DIDN'T HE GET OSAMA??
You can spin the facts about when/why/where the Intel came all you want, BUT that is a fact you can't get away from ...... HE QUIT LOOKING and disbanded the CIA office dedicated to finding Bin Laden, in 2006.
Now, THIS is why President Obama should be congratulaÂted for taking the HARD decision and NOT bombing the place.
How many times in Iraq did Bush just bomb a place and then not know 'if' the target was there?
How many times did he bomb a place, losing all intelligenÂce material?
How many times did he bomb a place ...killing everyone there, including kids?
President Obama had the guts to do the HARD MISSION -- and he got it RIGHT.
And given all of that, VOTES.......they probably should follow.......And since it surely worked for GWB in terr.orizing the nation then the campaign video may say:
GWB SAID HE KEPT YOU SAFE, BUT HE INJECTED FEAR BY USING l.IES AND DECEPTION.............OBAMA KEEPING YOU SAFE BY KI.LL.ING THE REASONS FOR FEAR AND SHARING THEIR (TERRO.RIST) INFORMATION........VOTE OBAMA 2012!!!!!!
President Obama should be congratulaÂted for taking the HARD decision and NOT bombing the place, which is what Bush did time and time again. Remember how he 'got/lost'wedon'tknow' Saddam Hussein so often in Bagdad? I do.... and Zarquawi ... ??
How many times in Iraq did Bush just bomb a place and then not know 'if' the target was there?
How many times did he bomb a place, losing all intelligenÂce material?
How many times did he bomb a place ...killing everyone there, including kids?
Thanks to President Obama having the guts to do it right, the USA has
100% certainty that Bin Laden is dead
Tons of valuable intelligence that has Al Queda worried
Very few casualties, and NO KIDS KILLED ..
Have the grace to admit that the President got this one 100% right. If he gets votes out of it, they are deserved. Don't INSULT the military just to insult their Commander in Chief .. that is petty
For all the time I was in the army prior to the G. W. Bush administration, we were told torture was wrong and ineffective and it was someone we could take pride in not doing.
The Geneva Conventions definition of torture was adequate after 10,000 years of military precedent on what torture is. We don't need a new definition, any more than we need any more GOP doublethink.