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Why is Obama skipping more than half of his daily intelligence meetings?
The Washington Post ^ | Sept. 10, 2012 | Marc A. Thiessen

Posted on 09/10/2012 9:29:24 AM PDT by Free ThinkerNY

President Obama is touting his foreign policy experience on the campaign trail, but startling new statistics suggest that national security has not necessarily been the personal priority the president makes it out to be. It turns out that more than half the time, the commander in chief does not attend his daily intelligence meeting.

The Government Accountability Institute examined President Obama’s schedule from the day he took office until mid-June 2012, to see how often he attended his Presidential Daily Brief (PDB) — the meeting at which he is briefed on the most critical intelligence threats to the country. During his first 1,225 days in office, Obama attended his PDB just 536 times — or 43.8 percent of the time. During 2011 and the first half of 2012, his attendance became even less frequent — falling to just over 38 percent. By contrast, Obama’s predecessor, George W. Bush almost never missed his daily intelligence meeting.

I asked National Security Council spokesman Tommy Vietor about the findings, and whether there were any instances where the president attended the intelligence meeting that were not on his public schedule. Vietor did not dispute the numbers, but said the fact that the president, during a time of war, does not attend his daily intelligence meeting on a daily basis is “not particularly interesting or useful.”

(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...


TOPICS: Front Page News; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: 2012; derelictionofduty; intelligencebriefing; nationalsecurityfail; obama; obamagolfing; obamamia; obamatruthfile
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To: Free ThinkerNY

I always pictured the presidential daily briefing as 1 or more people coming to the president in the Oval Office, not something he has to go anywhere to hear. So I just got an education. You don’t have to go anywhere to “attend” something. You just need to listen to it.


41 posted on 09/10/2012 10:28:05 AM PDT by wideminded
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To: Free ThinkerNY

Willful negligence? If you take your hands off the steering wheel, the car crashes. Our federal deficit, credit rating, global competitiveness ranking.. All TANKING under 0bama’s reign of no leadership. But.. HE’S AHEAD IN THE POLLS!!!!.. ‘FORWARD’!!!!!


42 posted on 09/10/2012 10:39:13 AM PDT by GeorgeWashingtonsGhost
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To: Free ThinkerNY

“Why is Obama skipping more than half of his daily intelligence meetings?”

Because he is stupid!


43 posted on 09/10/2012 10:45:04 AM PDT by funfan
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To: pops88
Is this a trick question? Ummm...because Valerie Jarrett is attending them?

I'd wager that Valerie Jarrett has even less interest in national security intelligence than does the President.

Simple fact of the matter is that nobody is minding the store...

44 posted on 09/10/2012 10:45:53 AM PDT by okie01 (THE MAINSTREAM MEDIA: Ignorance on parade.)
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To: Free ThinkerNY

“Intelligence” and “Obama” should never be in the same sentence.


45 posted on 09/10/2012 10:49:46 AM PDT by bgill
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To: Free ThinkerNY

One of the problems with him not going to almost every meeting is, if during a time of crisis (one that may not be known to the general public) Obama starts showing up to the PDB consistently, that change in pattern is a tip to the other side.

i.e....”something is up...Obama has been at his PDB for 2 straight weeks.”


46 posted on 09/10/2012 10:50:21 AM PDT by TheErnFormerlyKnownAsBig (It is going to be Foot to Ass combat on election day....my foot and a Rat's ass.)
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To: Free ThinkerNY

Because he (best Jack Nicholson voice) “can’t handle the Truth.”


47 posted on 09/10/2012 10:53:41 AM PDT by Little Ray (AGAINST Obama in the General.)
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To: NEMDF

Because of my dyslexia I read “below his pay grade as” below his gay pride.


48 posted on 09/10/2012 11:01:52 AM PDT by certrtwngnut (It's not the people who vote that count, it's the people who count the votes. (Josef Stalin))
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To: Free ThinkerNY

Regean was the gipper and Obama is the skipper.

He skipped from being a Jr Sen to President. In beteeen he had no Military service ,hardly anyone outside of his inner circle of radicals and communist know who he is,and with no real work experience in the private sector. With no evidence he knows anything about anything!
Thank goodness we didn’t elect Palin for proxi-President because we would have missed out on Obutthead.

Hs O’liness truly is the Presentdent or as I like to call him with all due disrespect intended the Prezbo.


49 posted on 09/10/2012 11:16:16 AM PDT by Leep (I'm a Chic-Fil-- A-merican)
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To: ken in texas
But he thinks he's more intelligent than all the intelligence to be presented.

This is exactly it. Plus, let's be blunt, he doesn't really care about the country. But the egoism is the primary reason. There have been presidents who cared about the country, perhaps even deeply so, but let their blind arrogance and belief in their own superiority lead them astray. Woe to us when we have a president who does not care about a strong America and is narcissist of the first water.

50 posted on 09/10/2012 11:19:50 AM PDT by WileyC
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To: Free ThinkerNY

Democrats are bored with and don’t like foreign policy because it takes time away from domestic policy which for them means vote buying, wealth redistribution, rewarding their friends, punishing their enemies and making money on the side via corruption


51 posted on 09/10/2012 11:23:56 AM PDT by dennisw (Government be yo mamma - Re-elect Barack Obama)
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To: Free ThinkerNY

With his staff leaking so much National security info to the press, he doesn’t need to go to the briefings, he just needs to watch CNN.


52 posted on 09/10/2012 11:33:22 AM PDT by READINABLUESTATE ("We must hang together, gentlemen...else, we shall most assuredly hang separately." - Franklin)
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To: Free ThinkerNY


Obama has missed half of his daily intelligence briefings for one simple reason....they conflict with tee-times!



53 posted on 09/10/2012 12:04:10 PM PDT by Arcy (When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, people groan.)
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To: Free ThinkerNY

Let me give a liberal response:

The President is under a lot of stress trying to help this country. Plus, he has competent people to handle the day to day things. If something happens he’ll be on top of it immediately.


54 posted on 09/10/2012 12:40:55 PM PDT by Terry Mross (2016 THE MOVIE....scarier than any zombie movie.)
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To: SamAdams76

Well, about two weeks in he DID say that he liked being president and he was good at it. As I recall he was flinging balls in the White Hut bowling alley at the time.


55 posted on 09/10/2012 1:19:51 PM PDT by cherokee1 (skip the names---just kick the buttz)
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To: Free ThinkerNY

Because Valerie Jarrett is attending in his place and she can pass the confidential information on to our enemies just as easily.


56 posted on 09/10/2012 1:40:13 PM PDT by crosshairs (America: Once the land of the free. Still the home of the brave.)
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To: Arcy

Bingo.

Remember the situation room picture when the SEALs took out Osama. Zippy in his golf jacket, looking like a kid on take your kid to work day. He is in over his head and everyone knows it. His cabinet and advisers all cover for him, but I’m sure it’s wearing on them, too. Lots of staff jumping ship. Carney must be on drugs to be able to keep a straight face when he lies to cover for him.


57 posted on 09/10/2012 3:24:08 PM PDT by generally (Don't be stupid. We have politicians for that.)
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To: Free ThinkerNY

Interesting that this critical article is from the Washington Post.


58 posted on 09/10/2012 8:22:12 PM PDT by Tymesup
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To: Free ThinkerNY

Its an Intelligence meet, that alone explains it.

But I suspect that at some point certain types of intel was just not to be reported to Obama.


59 posted on 09/10/2012 8:30:26 PM PDT by Eye of Unk (OPSEC)
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To: Free ThinkerNY
See Theissen's update:

White House doesn’t dispute my report on skipped meetings--Marc A. Thiessen

60 posted on 09/11/2012 10:57:42 AM PDT by Ooh-Ah
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