A Shifting Focus on Terrorism [Condi outperforming Powell!]

Washington Post ^ | April 24, 2005 | Jim Hoagland

[aculeus]

A new look for President Bush's global war on terrorism sits atop Condoleezza Rice's early to-do list at the State Department. Expect fairly soon some useful new handles on the problem and a more coherent overall strategy to guide the struggle that the bureaucracy abbreviates as GWOT.

[aculeus]

A worthwhile read.

It looks like we are (finally) going after Wahhabi ... thanks to our great Secretary of State.

Powell and Armitage apparently were far worse than anyone thought.

Armitage, it seems, was mentor to all the anti-Bolton whiners.

Let's hope that this WaPo article helps Bolton.

[SE Mom]

I'm disappointed to learn this about Armitage...I'd always given him more credit.

Go Condi!!!

[Loyal Buckeye]

Powell strikes me as someone who does not want to get his hands dirty. Consequently, while he was off handling big picture matters, the inmates were running the asylum at State. Condi appears to be much more hands on and an "organizer".

[trebb]

Let's hope that this WaPo article helps Bolton.

Especially since Powell "went Carter" and put his nose where it doesn't belong by making calls "of concern" over Bolton's nomination.

[Bahbah]

Powell strikes me as someone who does not want to get his hands dirty.

Powell never wanted to so much as break a nail. I wish the President would have fired him long ago, but then he would have been accused of not having the "temperment" to be president for being "mean" to those who not just disagree with him, but who go out of their way to undermine him at every turn.

[livius]

Yes, I think Bush was sort of stuck with Powell once he got him. There was no graceful way out.

Pity Powell seems to be making every effort to sully his own reputation by trying to sabotage the Bolton nomination. He's no longer SOS, and he should just remember that and step aside honorably.

[aculeus]

Here's a pro-Bolton op-ed in today's WaPo by Lawrence Eagleburger.


http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A10694-2005Apr22.html

[Santiago de la Vega]

This is the start of something big, I hope. Now if only they can see their way to create a permanent, comprehensive, and coherent system for dealing with all these problems we might get somewhere.

Currently, there is no plan for coordinating the various cabinet departments responsible for the war on terror. As we saw during the incompetent tenure of Powell, infighting will take up time and resources unless they're stopped by a superior power - meaning the President. Rather than doing their jobs, idiots like Powell spend their time trashing their colleagues. Somebody has to be in charge and put these Cabinet Officers in their place.

Rice can't do it, cause she's got her own interests to look after and problems to worry about. Rumsfeld and the other cabinet officers are in the same situation; so it has to be someone outside the cabinet, who reports directly to the President. Remember, this is the President's job, but he doesn't have the time or the resources to handle the task.

The recent promotion of Rove, and the return of Hughes, might tell us how the General Staff of the Presidency will operate. Overall policy will be set by the President and executed by Rove, with Hughes as his adviser. They will delegate responsibilities to the Cabinet Officers who are responsible for the execution of their orders.

I sure hope they get this right.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

Powell was more comfortable in striped pants.

[prairiebreeze]

good article, ping

[El Gato]

But now sitting in the Cabinet, Rice has pumped new energy and discipline into a fractious system that languished when she was Bush's national security adviser.

IOW, Condi is kicking butt and taking names! Yee Haw!

[section9]

This is interesting because it indicates that the President's high command, especially Rice, understands that the war is not against terrorism, which will exist until the end of time, but against salafism or Wahabism, which won't.

A war of ideas, not of terrain. That's the key.

Rice appears to understand this in a way Powell did not.

Be Seeing You,

Chris

[Billthedrill]

How does the United States, which is good at fighting countries we are at war with, fight a war against extremists in countries we are friends with? (Hello? Saudi Arabia? You still on the line?)

Easily enough should the accession to the throne bring a radical. We know where these people are. We know who they are. And it won't matter at that point how much oil they threaten to refuse to pump.