QUESTIONS FOR OBAMA

Mona Charen 


A few questions for President Barack Obama.
At your press conference, you said, "It is in
our national security interest not to see an
all-out civil war in Iraq." If that is the case,
why did you withdraw all U.S. forces from
Iraq in 2011? Were you motivated by
something other than U.S. national interests?
Did no one advise you that the current
disaster was possible when you proclaimed in
December 2011: "We're leaving behind a
sovereign, stable and self-reliant Iraq with a
representative government that was elected
by its people. We're building a new
partnership between our nations. And we are
ending a war, not with a final battle, but with
a final march toward home. This is an
extraordinary achievement, nearly nine years
in the making."
If it is in the U.S. national security interest to
keep Iraq from disintegrating, why are you
deploying at most 300 special forces -- just 50
more than you sent to find and destroy
Joseph Kony of the Lord's Resistance Army in
Uganda? Does Kony represent a comparable
threat to the United States in your judgment?
You said two things that seem contradictory --
that "U.S. troops are not going to be fighting
in Iraq again" and that you would consider
"targeted and precise" military action. Which
is true?
You said that you were sending Secretary of
State John Kerry to consult with countries in
the region, because all of Iraq's neighbors
have a "vital interest" in ensuring that Iraq
does not "descend into civil war or become a
safe haven for terrorists." Who were you
referring to? Saudi Arabia has been arming
the opposition to Bashar Assad, and doubtless
some of those arms have fallen into the hands
of the terrorist group ISIL, which operates in
both Syria and Iraq.
Do you think the Saudis will be swayed by
anything Kerry has to say after they've
flamboyantly expressed their disgust with
your leadership?
Did you mean Jordan, which is currently
struggling with more than 600,000 Syrian
refugees? Jordan certainly wants a stable
Iraq, but Jordan is among the weakest states
in the region. If Jordan did everything in its
power to stabilize Iraq, it would make little
difference.
Were you thinking of Iran? Where to begin?
Iran pulls Assad's strings, and it is Assad who
released the leadership of ISIL from his jails
precisely to radicalize the opposition to his
rule. He wagered that you would find it
difficult to help the rebels if they were
associated with extremists.
ISIL is, in a sense, Iran's achievement, not
Iran's problem. Iran is also the chief sponsor
of Nouri al-Maliki, the failed Iraqi leader
whose disastrous leadership has helped
propel Iraq to this crisis. Do you believe that
Iran has a vital interest in ensuring that Iraq
is not a haven for terrorists? Really? Iran has
devoted itself tirelessly since 1979 to creating
and supporting terrorists around the globe.
Iran created Hezbollah. Iran created the Al-
Quds force that killed countless Americans in
the Iraq War, assisted terror attacks in India
and South America, and plotted to blow up
the Saudi ambassador at a Washington, D.C.,
restaurant.
You said, "Above all, Iraqi leaders must rise
above their political differences and come
together around a political plan for Iraq's
future." Does this "must" have the same force
as your earlier call for Bashar Assad to step
down? What about your statement that "the
future of Ukraine must be decided by the
people of Ukraine" just a couple of weeks
before Russia annexed Crimea?
Do you think it is easier for factions within
Iraq, wracked by tribal rivalries, ethnic
divisions, religious differences, a history of
tyranny, and amid a crisis featuring armies
marching and beheadings by the hundreds to
"rise above their political differences" when
you cannot bring yourself to negotiate
sincerely with Republicans about the national
debt or spending?
You scolded President George W. Bush -- by
implication -- during your remarks when you
said that the present crisis should remind us
of "the need to ask hard questions before we
take action abroad, particularly military
action." Did you ask hard questions before
making the decision to withdraw all forces
from Iraq, or were you more interested
bragging rights about "ending wars"? Do you
see now that the enemy gets a vote?