Obama's Uncertain Commitment

From AEI:

Obama's Uncertain Commitment By Thomas Donnelly

New York Times Room for Debate

Tuesday, August 3, 2010











As perhaps befits an address to disabled veterans, President Obama's "Iraq" speech spent more time discussing veterans care and post-traumatic stress than on describing his long-term plans for securing that country. He even spent more energy describing the state of "his" war in Afghanistan.



The president may not like it, but Iraq is now his war, too--or rather, remains America's war. And while it's impossible to assess with precision what's up in Baghdad or Mosul from the distance of Washington, it does seem clear that there's reason to worry. Iraq's domestic politics are unsettled and prone to violence, as is the entire region. America's security and economic interests in Iraq have never been greater, but Obama's commitment is uncertain.



The president needs to tell his fellow Americans, too, what his post-2011 plans for Iraq are.Conversely, his ability to sit on the fence is not unlimited, either in Iraq or at home. There will, sooner or later, be a new government in Baghdad, and Iraqis will keep thrashing their way toward some form of new political compact that bridges their own sectarian and other divides and heals the wounds of the Saddam years. The nature and durability of that compact will depend, in a serious way, on how Iraqis assess American constancy.



The president needs to tell his fellow Americans, too, what his post-2011 plans for Iraq are. With his support shrinking and with Democratic majorities in Congress in play, it seems unlikely that we'll get clarification before November. But the president will be judged at least in some measure in 2012 for his performance on Iraq. George Bush's Iraq surge snatched the prospect of victory from the jaws of defeat--or at least that's how Republicans will tell the story. If there's a mess in Mesopotamia then, that, too, will be spun as "Obama's War."



Thomas Donnelly is a resident fellow at AEI.