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Obama is Our Next President, But is He Really Anti-war?
by James Glaser December 1, 2008 Barack Obama gave us the impression that he is anti-war, but you have to remember the man is a politician. Politicians will say anything if they think it will get them elected. It is what they do after the election that counts. Sure, Obama said if he was in the Senate, he would have voted against giving George Bush the power to attack Iraq. However, Barack Obama was not in the Senate when that vote was taken, so we will never know if that is how he really would have voted. We do know Hillary Clinton voted to give Bush that power, and we do know Obama was looking for something that would make him look different than Clinton for the primaries. Well, the primaries are over, and so is the general election. Who does Barack Obama pick to run his foreign policy? Hillary Clinton. So President-elect Barack Obama's Secretary of State, his Vice President Joe Biden, and his hold-over Secretary of Defense Robert Gates are all for the war in Iraq. On top of those three, now Barack Obama is talking about how Afghanistan is a "good war," and how he wants to have his own "troop surge" in Afghanistan just like George Bush's surge in Iraq. The only way Barack Obama is going to keep his campaign pledge to bring home the troops from Iraq is sixteen months is if the American people hold him to his word. Here are a few things to remember about our two undeclared wars going on right now. So far in 2008 we have had 310 of our troops killed in Iraq, and another 152 killed in Afghanistan. On top of that 1,915 of our troops have been wounded in Iraq, and like many other things about these two wars, we just don't know how many troops have been wounded this year in Afghanistan. Also think about this. With the economic mess we are in, the national media has just about quit reporting on either of these wars. The only reporting done is when we destroy another Afghan wedding party, or our troops step into Pakistan and start killing in a third country, or maybe they will tell us about attacking Syria, which puts our combat troops in a forth country. So, if you don't want a fifth, sixth, or seventh country on Washington's attack list, then you had better keep up the pressure on your Congressman, Senator, and our new President. Politicians have a habit of forgetting what they promised during the election once they get elected. I see no reason to believe that Barack Obama will be any different. A good example of how Obama thinks: Think of what you thought he meant when Obama ran around the country talking about "changing" Washington. Then look at his newly appointed cabinet. Is Obama's idea of change anything like the change you were thinking of? Could Barack Obama's Anti-war stance be different that yours? Keep the pressure on and help bring the troops home. |
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