Posted on 04/11/2009 1:24:10 AM PDT by JohnHuang2
Senior Obama administration officials are debating how to address a potential terrorist threat to U.S. interests from a Somali extremist group, with some in the military advocating strikes against its training camps. But many officials maintain that uncertainty about the intentions of the al-Shabab organization dictates a more patient, nonmilitary approach.
Al-Shabab, whose fighters have battled Ethiopian occupiers and the tenuous Somali government, poses a dilemma for the administration, according to several senior national security officials who outlined the debate only on the condition of anonymity.
The organization's rapid expansion, ties between its leaders and al-Qaeda, and the presence of Americans and Europeans in its camps have raised the question of whether a preemptive strike is warranted. Yet the group's objectives have thus far been domestic, and officials say that U.S. intelligence has no evidence it is planning attacks outside Somalia.
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
Got Overseas Contingency Operation?
Hostage-taking pirates, seizing assets, demanding more money from Americans. But enough about the Obama administration.
In another milestone, Obama has gone Jimmy Carter even before Jimmy Carter went Jimmy Carter. Even Carter wasn't as namby-pamby wimpy as Omamma's boy. A killer rabbit had managed to penetrate the Secret Service in a devilish plot to pirate Carter's canoe, but Carter bravely beat back the barbaric monster critter with one canoe paddle! Obama: Mr. Killer Rabbit, can we talk about this? Better not hurt me! I'll call the FBI to negotiate!
Obama would want to know what the swashbuckling, swaggering beastly Texas cowboy had done to the peaceful, misunderstood killer rabbit, noting that America had shown arrogance and had been dismissive of rabbits, then he'd offer the furry little pirate a "pathway to citizenship", and "card check", then he'd fly off to Camp David, call the whole thing a "distraction", even as feisty John Kerry vowed from aboard his swift-boat to form a committee to hold hearings on ways to more effectively capitulate to killer rabbits, while the Congressional Black Caucus pays the rabbit a visit, making sure he wasn't harmed by Obama's tough-guy approach.
Now that Obama has 'cleaned up' America's 'image' abroad by bowing to the Saudi King, a group of Muslim Somali terrorists, oops, sorry . . . peaceful Somali fishermen tried to hijack the U.S.-flagged Maersk Alabama, but the crew regained control of the cargo ship, apparently before Olabama could order them to surrender, in keeping with his commitment to the safety of all pirates concerned.
After Capt. Richard Phillips was recaptured following a desperate escape attempt, the AP praised Obama's "cautious response". So far, present Obama is bravely keeping mum, apparently wanting to dial the whole thing back from 'Piracy Crisis' to 'annoyance', or 'distraction from my wonderful housing plan.' If that doesn't work, he'll just shoot pollution into the air to cool things down.
"True to form, [Obama] is striking a cautious, low-profile public stance as the piracy crisis plays out," the AP fawned. As part of Obama's cunning low-profile effort, more naval vessels are joining the USS Bainbridge to watch Somali "pirates" hold an American hostage, on orders from the White House's USS Braindead.
Ironically, liberals insist that, just because these Muslim pirates hijack vessels and seize civilians and hold them hostage and demand ransom doesn't mean they're Muslim terrorists or anything, but don't hurt them or else Muslims will do something really terroristic, like hijack a cargo ship and demand ransom!
If this is no biggie, just a wittle, teensy-weensy isolated incident, just one of those things that happen every 200 years, nothing to see here, move on -- as White House flacks keep telling Obama's media -- then what does it say that the propped-up flailing messiah accomplished in less than three months what took Jimmy Carter four years to achieve (turning America into a global laughing stock)?
If you're North Korea or Iran's mullahs, you're getting a tingle up your leg glimpsing the enervated, enfeebled, limping TOTUS blundering around over a few lightly armed "pirates" in a lifeboat. A Navy SEAL team would ice the little darlings once Capt. Phillips jumped overboard to escape, but you've got a community organizer "closely monitoring" the 'pirate situation' when you need a president.
If Obama vowed to move rapidly to uselessly reboot our image abroad, he's done it in spades, which is how you get rocketman Kim Jong-Il's missile test, Iran running 7,000 advanced centrifuges, the UN Security Council laughing you off, Austrians rebuffing you (in their native Austrian language!) and the French doing a 'how-to' hostage rescue, all in the same lousy week.
Anyway, that's...
My Two Cents...
"JohnHuang2"
For the readers, today I put together a list of other events that Presidents had to deal with — other “crises” that came up. It’s quite interesting.
You might look at what Reagan had to put up with, which was quite a bit...
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/bloggers/2226437/posts?page=43#43
Even Ford put an end to the Mayaguez incident.
Yep, he did, and fortunately, he didn’t have to deal with too much more.... Look at Reagan though. It was *constant trouble* for Reagan — and he did well with it, too...
Let’s hope that Obama doesn’t have to do as much as Reagan had to do... LOL...
Big Cluster. The boat and crew were already released. Killed a bunch of Marines, left three behind that were executed.
It's more fun to sign laws and EOs. It's only a piece of paper with text on it that can be changed at any time...sort of. That's his fun focus now. Inanimate objects.
I would prefer to have him stay out of it, since it’s a problem that the world created, over several years, by continuing to cater to the pirates. The U.S. hasn’t been paying ransoms; it’s been the other countries doing it. So, let them deal with it themselves and keep us out of it. Just get our captain out of there and we’ll give it back to the world to deal with it themselves... LOL...
By coincidence I was just reading about the Mayaguez incident earlier this afternoon.
Hopefully lightning doesn’t strike twice...
Talk about a clueless and inexperienced administration.
No one group of people could be this ignorant. It has to be a planned strategy to make a failed past president, Peanut brained Carter, look good.
I strongly believe that physical action should take place and that's before the Captain is moved.
According to davidrodhamgergull...........Obama doesn’t have to deal with this crisis. That’s what he has a government for.
This spin tops Baghdad Bob by a mile. Wonder how much Gergen is paid for his kneepad services.
No Problem.
Sink any Vessel Involved and Flatten any Port that Pirate Vessels Try to Enter.
Just shoot the F<ckers! How hard is that.
Yet the group’s objectives have thus far been domestic..
LOL! Ya - aside from hundreds of acts of piracy on the high seas.
Even the French surrender monkeys had the cullions to send in their military and rescue their hostages. I find it sadly laughable that Obama sent the FBI to negotiate with these Somali thugs rather than act decisively by sending in Navy SEALs to accomplish a rescue. Even Jimmy Carter eventually sent in a military mission to try to rescue the hostages in Iran ...of course it was only after nearly a year of hand wringing and failed negotiations with the mullahs.
Obama is voting present again. He is saying to H—l with the white hostage captain, Allah Akbar to his muslim brothers.
Bambi is voting present again.
Even Jimmy Carter eventually sent in a military mission to try to rescue the hostages in Iran...
Poorly trained for the type mission, and in a sand storm, which resulted in poor visibility and airplanes colliding in the middle of the desert.
(Added for the younger people that have no knowledge of the event.)
Set the raft on fire. All of them will jump off to save themselves. Pick out Phillips and let the others drown.
Then in a coordinated effort, attack every boat under siege. take out every terrorist. Then go after the camps. Finally, go after the Somali terrorists who are fighting Ethiopia.
One fell swoop end it all.
Yes, meantime; the King is in his parlor. . .eating pizza.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.