Three must reads from today’s newspapers that frame several issues as the world watches at Kobani nears the time when ISIS will dominate and control the city of 50,000 and the slaughters of innocents will begin.
The nation has polled strongly in favor of President Obama’s plan for combatting ISIS. But there is continued polling that strongly suggests Americans do not want our combat forces to join in the fight. In addition with all that combined polls show Americans do not think the plan outlined by Obama will succeed in defeating ISIS. The polling data suggests confused thinking.
The point we need to be mindful of today as ISIS moves on Kobani with ruthless savagery is they will have a massive success with a takeover of that city even while the world community is ‘at war’ with them. That clearly sends the wrong message.
Clearly there needs to be some adjustments, and as much as I do not desire to see another land war that involves Americans, as I have stated many times over the past weeks, it is also important to have policies based on what is required—what is needed for a military win over ISIS. Given that need it very well may require American troops on the ground.
As such there are two editorials worth reading from national newspapers, and a column about the possible shakeup of the inside workings of the Obama White House following the mid-term elections that are worthy of my reader’s time today.
Contradictions such as these are allowing the Islamic State not only to survive but also to expand. Independent military analysts believe that, in addition to targeting Kobane and towns in western Iraq, the Islamic State is readying a full-scale assault on Baghdad. To turn back the offensive, U.S. forces will need to step up the tempo of operations and react more quickly to movements on the ground, which will be difficult without ground personnel. Turkey, with its powerful army, must be brought into the fight, and that will require U.S.-Turkish agreement on a strategy for dealing with the Assad regime.
For now, the U.S. operation in Iraq and Syria is defined mainly by its limitations. The restrictions Mr. Obama has imposed on his commanders are not compatible with the objectives he has asked them to achieve.
In his reversal last month on Iraq and Syria, President Obama ruled out U.S. ground forces and left out the Assad regime from his ISIS plan. As Senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham wrote in these pages on Tuesday, the absence of a policy to remove Assad is a “self-defeating contradiction.” Turkey and the Gulf allies think the campaign against ISIS will strengthen their nemesis Assad and his Iranian godfathers. They are right to be worried.
The Turks and friendly Arab are looking for American leadership in Kobani and beyond. The Syrian city needs weapons and fuel supplies, a more intense bombing campaign, and maybe U.S. Special Forces to end the ISIS siege. This early crisis in the Obama campaign exposes flaws in his strategy that will continue to undermine the military effort and the anti-ISIS regional alliance.
No successful war plan is static, and Mr. Obama needs to adjust his now if he wants to stop a massacre in Kobani and the continuing march of ISIS.
There is talk as outlined by David Ignatius that there are some staff changes being contemplated at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
Obama’s foreign-policy team needs help. National security adviser Susan Rice still suffers from unfair attacks over the Benghazi affair. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel was similarly tarnished by a rough confirmation hearing. Secretary of State John Kerry has been a tireless advocate for Obama’s policies, but there’s inevitable tension between a strong secretary and a centralizing White House. CIA Director John Brennan is an experienced Arabist who can frame Middle East strategy, but he was wounded by an unfortunate fight with Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), chairman of the intelligence committee.
Obama has framed the right basic strategy for dealing with the Islamic State, and for many other issues, as well. But he appears to recognize that his administration needs new intellectual capital to implement these policies boldly and effectively in what’s left of his presidency. During his last two years in office, Obama needs to step on the accelerator, not the brake.
CAFFEINATED POLITICS 