U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel, left, with U.S. President Barack Obama on the second and final day of the NATO summit at the Celtic Manor resort near Newport in Wales on Friday.
Obama vs. The Generals -- Marc A. Thiessen, Washington Post
Pity poor Gen. Lloyd Austin, top commander of U.S. forces in the Middle East.
Rarely has a U.S. general given his commander in chief better military advice, only to see it repeatedly rejected.
In 2010, Gen. Austin advised President Obama against withdrawing all U.S. forces from Iraq, recommending that the president instead leave 24,000 U.S. troops (down from 45,000) to secure the military gains made in the surge and prevent a terrorist resurgence. Had Obama listened to Austin’s counsel, the rise of the Islamic State could have been stopped.
But Obama rejected Austin’s advice and enthusiastically withdrew all U.S. all forces from the country, boasting that he was finally bringing an end to “the long war in Iraq.”
Now the “long war in Iraq” is back. And because Obama has not learned from his past mistakes, it is likely to get even longer.
Last week, Obama announced a strategy to re-defeat the terrorists in Iraq. But instead of listening to his commanders this time around, Obama once again rejected the advice of . . . you guessed it . . . Gen. Lloyd Austin.
Read more ....
My Comment: Marc A. Thiessen from the Washington Post is a little late to the party .... this blog covered this story 5 days ago .... Did President Obama Ignore His Generals When He Asked For Options On Combating The Islamic State?
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