The Two Stooges Do Libya

Just in case you've forgotten, we are at war with Libya. Wars are frequently confusing and chaotic in operation, but they can be clear in their objectives. The aim of the United States in the WWII was the destruction of the German and Japanese regimes. Mission accomplished.

Most Americans are still wondering what the mission is in Libya. Perhaps we prevented a humanitarian disaster by preventing Muammar Qaddafi from annihilating his disorganized opposition. That preemptive intervention, however successful, raises the obvious question: what next? With Q. in control over everything he needs to keep going and the rebels helpless the moment we withdraw our protection, what (to use a phrase incessantly spoken by critics of Dubya) is our exit strategy?

The policy (or quazi-policy) continues to morph. From MSNBC:

The United States is using armed Predator drones in Libya to target Muammar Gaddafi's forces with the approval of President Barack Obama, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said on Thursday.

The drones are very useful against small, defined targets. That is to say, they are airborne assassins. The Administration has strenuously denied that Qaddafi himself is a target, though they just as strenuously insist that he must go. What exactly is the Predator's mission?

The first two Predators, which carry Hellfire missiles and can stay in the air for 24 hours, headed to Libya on Thursday but had to turn back due to bad weather, said General James Cartwright, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Was it really bad weather that caused the Predators to turn back? Or did these smart weapons figure out all on their own that the Administration had no idea what it is doing?

It gets better. The Administration has been at odds with itself for weeks about arming the Libyan rebels. From Foreign Policy:

Rep. Mike Rogers (R-MI) said in a late Wednesday interview that the Obama administration's top national security officials were deeply split on whether arming the rebels was a good idea. In a classified briefing Wednesday with lawmakers, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Defense Secretary Robert Gates, Joint Chiefs Chairman Adm. Mike Mullen, and Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, Rogers said it was clear that there were deep divisions between the cabinet officials regarding the wisdom of arming the rebels.

So do we arm the rebels or not? From the Washington Post:

The United States and its allies have entered a new stage of involvement in Libya, sending assistance and advisers directly to opposition military forces, which have been unable to break Libyan leader Moammar Gaddafi's stranglehold over much of the country despite help from NATO airstrikes.

France and Italy said Wednesday that they would join Britain in dispatching military advisers to assist the inexperienced and disorganized rebel army, primarily in tactics and logistics. President Obama authorized sending $25 million worth of nonlethal equipment, including body armor, tents, uniforms and vehicles.

We are giving the rebels "nonlethal equipment"? We are deepening our involvement in Libya by sending in advisors and $25 million in military hardware but we aren't giving them any actual weapons.

This is nucking futs. We are putting the rebels in body armor and uniforms but we are not giving them rifles and ammunition? Maybe arming the rebels is a bad idea. After all, we don't know who they are or where the weapons will end up. What do we know, then, and what are we up to?

To say that Obama's Libya policy is bad would be misleading. It's schizophrenic. The Administration is deeply split on the next step in Libya. It's the President's job to resolve such splits by making a decision. If there is anything we have learned about Barack Obama, it is that he is not up to that job. Even the unmanned drones could figure that out.

Comments

[Raph]

I don't know what I find more amusing - the President's handling of foreign policy, or the fact that a drone carrying a weapon called "Hellfire missiles" would have to turn back...because of bad weather.

[Donald Pay]

Maybe you should explain to us the actions of the Three Stooges (McCain=Larry, Leiberman=Curly and Graham=Moe)? They were in Libya not so long ago praising Qaddhafi, and offering military aid. "Take that."

[Ken Blanchard]

Donald: none of the three is President. Glad to be of assistance.