Heritage "Tonight President Barack Obama will deliver a prime-time Oval Office address on Iraq. Acting as President of the United States, the leader of a country, not a movement, tonight would be a perfect time for Obama to give due credit to those commanders who made the current progress in Iraq possible. He should thank General Ray Odierno, who implemented the counterinsurgency strategy that led to the dramatic decrease in violence in Iraq, General David Petraeus, who oversaw all coalition forces in Iraq during the surge, and President George W. Bush, who had the courage to explain the new strategy to the American people at a time when it was extremely unpopular to do so.
"Unfortunately, if the Weekly Address President Obama delivered from his rented vacation home on Martha’s Vineyard is any indication, none of that will happen."....
"As a candidate, Barack Obama could afford to indulge in irresponsible rhetoric about "ending" the war in Iraq without regard for the disastrous consequences of losing that war. But as President, Obama should act decisively as the nation’s commander-in-chief and protect vital American interests by successfully finishing the jobs in Iraq and Afghanistan." Emphasis added.
GIBBS: Obama Believed Surge Would Work; Voted Against It Anyway Fox video.
NY Times: Obama to Make 2nd Oval Office Speech " “I’m a general fan of how he’s handled the two wars,” said Michael E. O’Hanlon, senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. “But if there’s a consistent weakness, it’s the episodic quality in how we hear from him about the wars. He temporarily engages.” "
Obama’s Iraq Speech Should Stress a Resolute U.S. Security Commitment "In both Afghanistan and Iraq, bolstering the security of local allies is crucial to the long-term success of U.S. policy in both regions and in the broader war against terror. And U.S. troops should be part of this effort for many years to come. As a candidate, Barack Obama could afford to indulge in irresponsible rhetoric about “ending” the war in Iraq without regard for the disastrous consequences of losing that war. But as President, Obama should act decisively as the nation’s commander-in-chief and protect vital American interests by successfully finishing the jobs in Iraq and Afghanistan."
William Kristol: A Note to the President "When you speak to the troops [tonight] at Fort Bliss, and to the nation tomorrow night from the Oval Office, you speak, of course, as the president. As our president.
"You won't be speaking—not in these settings—as a once (and perhaps future) candidate for president. Nor as the leader of the Democratic Party. Nor as a critic of your predecessor's foreign policy. You are all of those things, of course—but it is not in those capacities that you speak to the troops at Fort Bliss, and to the nation from the Oval Office."
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