05-03-2011, 04:53 PM
The surgically precise locating, capturing, and killing of Osama bin Laden has brought into sharp relief the ineffectiveness and completely wrong focus of Bush's foreign policy. Bush went after "the man who tried to kill my Daddy..." The Obama administration got the world's most wanted terrorist and criminal.
The CIA and the nation's top security apparatus has re-earned America's respect, after the disaster that was the handling of pre-9/11 intelligence, the Iraq war build-up, and the aftermath of the invasion and occupation.
Those of us who opposed the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq said from the beginning that war was not the answer, using intelligence and law enforcement to track down bin Laden and his lieutenants was the answer. We've been vindicated by the events of the early morning hours on Monday in Abbottabad, Pakistan.
Now we have to focus on our relationship with that country - what the heck was going on during the Musharraf era? What did he do with our billions except prop up his own unconstitutional military regime, with the blessings of Pres. Bush?
The top 8 al Queda operatives have been caught in Pakistan. Now we know that OBL was hiding there for at least the past 5 or 6 years, maybe longer.
Not hiding in caves, but living in cities. And we caught them through intelligence work, sometimes aided by Pakistan, sometimes obstructed. Not bombing and occupation, not torture.
The rest of this story is about our relationship with Pakistan. Every dollar of military aid going there needs to be under a microscope.
The CIA and the nation's top security apparatus has re-earned America's respect, after the disaster that was the handling of pre-9/11 intelligence, the Iraq war build-up, and the aftermath of the invasion and occupation.
Those of us who opposed the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq said from the beginning that war was not the answer, using intelligence and law enforcement to track down bin Laden and his lieutenants was the answer. We've been vindicated by the events of the early morning hours on Monday in Abbottabad, Pakistan.
Now we have to focus on our relationship with that country - what the heck was going on during the Musharraf era? What did he do with our billions except prop up his own unconstitutional military regime, with the blessings of Pres. Bush?
The top 8 al Queda operatives have been caught in Pakistan. Now we know that OBL was hiding there for at least the past 5 or 6 years, maybe longer.
Not hiding in caves, but living in cities. And we caught them through intelligence work, sometimes aided by Pakistan, sometimes obstructed. Not bombing and occupation, not torture.
The rest of this story is about our relationship with Pakistan. Every dollar of military aid going there needs to be under a microscope.