Posted on 06/12/2014 6:52:47 PM PDT by Red6
President Barack Obama on Thursday threatened U.S. military strikes in Iraq against Sunni Islamist militants who have surged out of the north to menace Baghdad and want to establish their own state in Iraq and Syria.
Iraqi Kurdish forces took advantage of the chaos to take control of the oil hub of Kirkuk as the troops of the Shi'ite-led government abandoned posts, alarming Baghdad's allies both in the West and in neighboring Shi'ite regional power Iran.
"I don’t rule out anything because we do have a stake in making sure that these jihadists are not getting a permanent foothold in either Iraq or Syria," Obama said at the White House when asked whether he was contemplating air strikes. Officials later stressed that ground troops would not be sent in.
Obama was looking at "all options" to help Iraq's leaders, who took full control when the U.S. occupation ended in 2011. "In our consultations with the Iraqis, there will be some short-term immediate things that need to be done militarily," he said.
But he also referred to long-standing U.S. complaints that Shi'ite Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki had failed to do enough to heal a sectarian rift that has left many in the big Sunni minority, shut out of power when U.S. troops overthrew Saddam Hussein in 2003, nursing grievances and keen for revenge.
"This should be also a wakeup call for the Iraqi government. There has to be a political component to this," Obama said.
In a related article, Obama already publicly declares that there will be no use of ground troops: http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/06/12/us-iraq-security-obama-military-idUSKBN0EN21220140612
(Excerpt) Read more at reuters.com ...
Stage I: Something bad happens.
Stage II: We drop a lot of ordinance, we pin medals on each other, give great sounding speeches on some metaphysical altruistic idea, declare victory, and leave.
Stage III: We watch as the place implodes from afar, write books (all self ingratiating) about how we could have done things differently, and make movies in which we somehow frame it as if we did win after all depending on how one looks at it.
This sounds a bit different from the Sun Tzu version of the "Art of War."
Vietnam
Lebanon
Somalia
Iraq: in the process of failing Afghanistan: next to fail
If you're not going to war with the intent to win, don't go to war!
For those of us who have lost friends or family, who sweat and toiled, separated from our loved ones for years, it was all in vain.
Post WWII, the US has had a hard time winning any war other than the quick campaign where you go in, smash everything and then leave. Some Presidents, like Reagan understood this reality and despite being very kinetic in his foreign policies, avoided any sort of protracted campaign where the US inherits a long term and large scale commitment on the ground, where we engage in nation building, or fighting a guerrilla war. Examples of Reagan: Grenada, Libya 1986, Iran 1988, most notably his anti communist proxy wars in Nicaragua, Afghanistan, Angola, and Cambodia.
You tell ‘em Barry! LOL!
OMG. Another Red Line in the sand. No, a pink line and a tutu. No, a sandy colored line that blends into the sandy colored sand.
In 2007, Obama said in his first presidential press conference that the lost military lives were ‘wasted in Iraq’.
Elections have consequences.
There...all better! Now when is my tee time?
Now, there he goes again. Never tires of drawing red lines.
Oh no, one of those infamous Hillary Clinton “stern letters” .... probably quaking in their boots as they behead their enemies!
Somebody singing in the diner tonight, “Ba ba ba ba bomb Iraq . . .” The people are not going to go for this, I have a feeling.
Michelle keeps buying him New Pens!!
bump
Make sure the maps are updated to avoid hitting the Chinese Embassy.
So, rather than catching the Jihadist’s in a vast open space as they approach a City, we screw around and wait until they get entrenched in the City.
Obama must be getting advice from the infamous AA General Colin Powell, who advised Bush 41 to stop attacking the retreating Iraqi Military when they were in the open because it “looked bad”. War is hell, but Colin Powell never signed up for that reality.
We can always use good military insight on this site and a reflection on the imbecility of past commands.
What does it take for Boehner to begin Articles of Impeachment for the Democrat’s Obama?
What a incredible mess. No one to really root for.
General Patton would have been proud. /s
I'll believe he'll take action it when I see it.
President Loudmouth had so many chips knocked off his shoulder, he has an aide whose sole function is to hand him fresh chips.
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