Thursday, October 28, 2004
Micromanaging the military
I'll be the first to admit that foreign policy -- be it trade talks or the war against terrorism -- doesn't make my wick wet. I'm not saying that foreign policy isn't important, just that I just can't get excited about what is happening in Taiwan when we can't even fix Social Security. Perhaps it's a policy wonk thing left over from my past life as a hack -- maybe I'm just a bit provincial. Whatever the case, this whole Al Qaqaa thing has got me flumoxed.
If I've got it all straight, there were quite a bit (380 tons) of explosives at this location that have disappeared. This was the big "October Surprise"? Kerry, trying to squeeze the issue for every precious drop of blood, is suggesting that the situation is all Bush's fault even though it's not exactly clear that the explosives were even there when the military arrived.
What I can't figure out is when every minor military operation became the President's responsibility. I understand the buck has to stop somewhere, but can we really hold the President accountable for every military screw-up (assuming there even was one)? Is there really a feeling in this country that the President should be involved in planning every tactical move in a war? And, if so, do the same people believe Kerry can do any better?
If I've got it all straight, there were quite a bit (380 tons) of explosives at this location that have disappeared. This was the big "October Surprise"? Kerry, trying to squeeze the issue for every precious drop of blood, is suggesting that the situation is all Bush's fault even though it's not exactly clear that the explosives were even there when the military arrived.
What I can't figure out is when every minor military operation became the President's responsibility. I understand the buck has to stop somewhere, but can we really hold the President accountable for every military screw-up (assuming there even was one)? Is there really a feeling in this country that the President should be involved in planning every tactical move in a war? And, if so, do the same people believe Kerry can do any better?
Centinel 3:20 PM #