Crossposted from Flopping Aces
REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque
Defending his brand of world politics, President Barack Obama said Sunday that he “strengthens our hand” by reaching out to enemies of the United States and making sure that the nation is a leader, not a lecturer, of democracy.
Obama’s foreign doctrine emerged across his four-day trip to Latin America, his first extended venture to a region of the world where resentment of U.S. power still lingers. He got a smile, handshakes and even a gift from incendiary leftist leader Hugo Chavez of Venezuela, and embraced overtures of new relations from isolated Cuban President Raul Castro.
“The whole notion was that if we showed courtesy or opened up dialogue with governments that had previously been hostile to us, that that somehow would be a sign of weakness,” Obama said, recalling his race for the White House and challenging his critics today.
“The American people didn’t buy it,” Obama said. “And there’s a good reason the American people didn’t buy it _ because it doesn’t make sense.”
Of course Chavez and Castro would embrace Obama… why shouldn’t they be happy about this? It’s in their best interest. But are we gaining anything back in return? Is this “Obama doctrine” really a strength or a show of weakness?
Newt Gingrich on Sunday:
“This does look a lot like Jimmy Carter. Carter tried weakness and the world got tougher and tougher because the predators, the aggressors, the anti-Americans, the dictators, when they sense weakness, they all start pushing ahead.”
Maybe he’d care to extend that “reaching out/turning enemies into friends” policy to non-states as well, and not just lefty dictators- er, I mean presidents (no I don’t)?
Al Qaeda’s second-in-command told Muslims not to be fooled by U.S. President Barack Obama’s policies which, he said on an Islamist website on Monday, are no different to those of his predecessor, George W. Bush.
“America came to us with a new face, with which it is trying to fool us. He is calling for change, but (he aims) to change us so that we abandon our religion and rights,” Ayman al-Zawahri said in an audio recording on the website.
Zawahri said Obama’s election was an acknowledgement that Bush’s policy had failed.
“Obama did not change the image of America among Muslims…America is still killing Muslims,” said the Egyptian militant leader.
Also:
The Office of Legal Counsel Released (”Torture”) Memos-
Mark Wilson - Getty Images
“On the question of so-called torture, we don’t do torture. We never have. It’s not something that this administration subscribes to. Again, we proceeded very cautiously. We checked. We had the Justice Department issue the requisite opinions in order to know where the bright lines were that you could not cross.
The professionals involved in that program were very, very cautious, very careful — wouldn’t do anything without making certain it was authorized and that it was legal. And any suggestion to the contrary is just wrong. Did it produce the desired results? I think it did. “- Dick Cheney, ABC News exclusive interview on Dec. 15, 2008
I was hoping one of the FA authors would blog about the Obama Administration’s declassification of 4 memos from the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel, from 2002 to 2005.
I haven’t had time to read up on these releases; and since no one else has made a post as of yet, I figured I’d put out an open thread before it becomes yesterday’s the other day’s news.
Was the Administration right in releasing these? For what purpose does it serve the public?
Did the “harsh interrogation techniques”, from what we know, constitute “torture”? And did they achieve any positive results in the way of actionable intelligence?
August 1, 2002
Memorandum for John Rizzo
Acting General Counsel of the Central Intelligence Agency
Interrogation of al Qaida Operative
Also of interest:
The President Ties His Own Hands on Terror
The point of interrogation is intelligence, not confession.
By MICHAEL HAYDEN and MICHAEL B. MUKASEY
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