President Barack Obama delivers his address on Libya at the National Defense University in Washington on Monday. (MANUEL BALCE CENETA/The Associated Press)
President Obama spoke Monday night presenting his case for United States involvement in Libya. He defended his use of military action saying that the U.S. had to intervene to save the lives of our fellow human beings.
“And as president, I refused to wait for the images of slaughter and mass graves before taking action,” he said. “I am convinced that a failure to act in Libya would have carried a far greater price for America.”
However, in his speech he also claimed that though he does not support the Gaddafi regime, he will not use American troops to dismantle it.
This claim met criticism from both sides of the political spectrum.
Democrats still believe the operation looks very similar to George W. Bush and the Iraq situation, despite Obama’s reassurances otherwise.
Republicans disagreed with his decision to make a move without consulting Congress.
“When our men and women in uniform are sent into harm’s way, Americans and troops deserve a clear mission from our commander-in-chief, not a speech nine days late,” Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, said.
Cal Jillson, an SMU political science professor and member of the Council on Foreign Relations think tank, offered his opinion on Obama’s next move.
“The Obama administration will try to step back and let NATO take the lead,” Jillson predicted. “If Gaddafi falls to NATO pressure, the Obama strategy will look pretty good. On the other hand, if Gaddafi’s support holds in parts of the military and the country, we could end up with a protracted civil war and that would look like a failure of administration policy.”
The crisis in Libya and the U.S. involvement has dominated headlines for over a month, but many SMU students have been left wondering why a country so far away should matter to them.
Jillson argues that students should definitely be following the action in Libya.
“Over the last several decades, as democracy came to many other parts of the world, the Middle East seemed impervious,” Jillson said. “The Middle East dictators are toppling, whether democracy follows remains to be seen. It’s a show worth watching.”
