“This is going to end up being the worst of both worlds if we keep on like this…We’re announcing basically that the mission has failed.” Ambassador Bolton on Fox News
While the African Union is trying to negotiate a ceasefire between Qaddafi and the rebels, the Nato Secretary General is backing away from Libya saying that military action alone won’t solve Libya’s problems, which basically means that the mission has now failed.
BOLTON:
“I think President Obama has taken what was at one point a fairly straight forward mission with a fairly straight forward objective that is to say getting rid of Qaddafi and turned it into a swamp.
The President said that our objective in using military force against Qaddafi’s army was to protect innocent civilians. What happens in a cease-fire is that Qaddafi stays in power. Since Qaddafi is the principle threat to these innocent Libyan civilians, we’re announcing basically that the mission has failed and setting up the possibility for future conflict in the very near future.”
So if we can’t win the war in Libya and getting Qaddafi out isn’t our objective, then it looks like Obama has not only wasted a bunch of money but also put our troops in harm’s way for nothing. If Qaddafi stays in power then literally nothing has changed and he will likely defeat the rebels and kill them as I doubt he will settle for just half the country, at least in the long run. Thus our humanitarian objective of protecting innocent civilians will have failed as well.
Wild Thing’s comment……..
Bolton, as usual offers great clarity.
We took sides in a civil war we had no business in.
Bolton 2012
obama dicked around, waivered, wobbled, then made the wrong decision. This situation was Europe’s problem, not America’s. Obviously Soros didn’t know what to do, so the decision was left up to obama. Even his teleprompter was indecisive.
Eddie, damn right! Bolton 2012.
Just look at who got us into this mess, not only obama, but Samantha Powers, Hillary, and Susan Rice. Kadaffy outfoxed the hens and caught them with their pants down. And How many Billion has this cost so far. Now we have Marines over there, with no mission, no exit strategy and no leader.
I usually like Bolton. If the mission was only to limit bloodshed, as was first stated, then a cease fire at this time may have done so. If there are no reprisals later we can say we helped, in a humanitarian way to reduce civilian death. pbo, has complicated the mission by stating that Qdfy must go. pbo clearly does not know what he is doing in foreign policy by saying that Qdfy must go but not committing the resources (military forces) to see to it.