Tomahawks into Syria as Turkey remains chicken

Just so we are clear on this – There is a HUGE difference between President George W. Bush attacking al-Qaeda (‘War on Terror’) within Pakistan, Afghanistan and Yemen, and what President Obama is doing now.
The most notable difference is President Bush had authorization and agreement, with each sovereign nation, to attack the terror entity within it’s border; Obama has no such agreement with Syria.
And remember, according to President Obama 2013, the “2003 George Bush war on terror is over“.   OVER!   Not to mention the post 9-11 AUMF was specifically only for al-Qaeda, and ISIS is admittedly, by Obama and al-Qaeda, not al-Qaeda.   So what exactly is the “legal authority” President Obama is using?

Secretary of State John Kerry would not answer that question to congress last week. Senior White House National Security and Foreign Policy advisor Susan Rice would not answer that question last Friday. White House spokesperson Josh Earnest would also not answer that question last Friday.  President Obama’s chief of Staff, Denis McDonough, would not answer that question on Saturday, and U.N. Ambassador Samantha Power would not answer that question on Sunday.
The mysterious “legal authority” is said to exist, but has never been outlined.
Yet on Monday the attacks began.
Under what legal authority? We are not under attack, this is not a defensive decision. This is 100% offensive. (more…)

The slow motion U.S. response to the crisis on Mount Sinjar is not only understandable it’s actually quite predictable.

President Obama’s entire ideological outlook and world view is born amid the kitchens, coffee tables, and social organizations of his life.   Together with his compadre’s they view the Gaza conflict through the prism of righteous protests against U.S. engagements in Vietnam.

Bill Ayers famously views armed opposition to the U.S. government as a patriotic and loyal endeavor – what’s a few local bombs intended to do if not to prove a point.   The rockets from Gaza are no more radical in the mind of the radical left than Ayers pentagon bombing of another similarly oppressive entity, the United States.

But something happens at that very specific juncture where the presentation of Hope and Fundamental Change meets the more brutal reality of consequence.  (more…)

TEXAS – The Army read former Afghanistan prisoner of war Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl his rights during his first interview with an investigator on Wednesday.
The Army is investigating the circumstances of Bergdahl’s disappearance from his base in Afghanistan and his subsequent capture by the Taliban in 2009. Some former members of his unit allege that Bergdahl, 28, deserted his post, which could be an offense punishable under the Uniform Military Code of Justice.
The investigating officer, Army Maj. Gen. Kenneth Dahl, questioned Bergdahl for the first time on Wednesday at Fort Sam Houston in Texas, where Bergdahl is currently stationed.
Army spokeswoman Lt. Col. Alayne Conway said the reading of Miranda rights was typical during a military administrative “15-6” investigation, and that Bergdahl was “not charged with anything” and “not under arrest.” (more…)

SAUDI ARABIA – With the ISIS militant forces inching closer to Baghdad, Saudi Arabia has urged allies Pakistan and Egypt to send in troops to secure its border near Iraq.
Saudi Arabia shares a 500 mile-long border with Iraq and Syria.
“The kingdom is calling in favors from Egypt and Pakistan,” an adviser to the Saudi government told The Times. “No one is certain what ISIS has planned, but it’s clear a group like this will target Mecca if it can. We expect them to run out of steam, but no one is taking any chances.”

The ISIS has a strong control on Iraq’s western borders near Syria and Jordan.
And with the militants taking one town after the other in Iraq, the Southern border with Saudi Arabia could be the next possible target. (more…)

It’s an inevitable outcome.   President Obama and DoD cannot allow Bowe Bergdahl to be found guilty of desertion and/or treason – it would make them look bad…. 

WASHINGTON — Six weeks after being released from five years in Taliban captivity, Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl is expected to return to life as a regular Army soldier as early as Monday, Defense Department officials said late Sunday.
Sergeant Bergdahl has finished undergoing therapy and counseling at an Army hospital in San Antonio, and will assume a job at the Army North headquarters at the same base, Fort Sam Houston, the officials said.
He is also expected to meet with Maj. Gen. Kenneth R. Dahl, the officer who is investigating the circumstances of Sergeant Bergdahl’s disappearance from his outpost in Afghanistan in 2009.
Sergeant Bergdahl’s transfer from the therapy phase to a regular soldier’s job is part of his reintegration into Army life, officials said. He will live in barracks and have two other soldiers help him readjust. (more…)

https://twitter.com/khorasan313/statuses/486806279470346240
(via WeaselZippers) The man to the left of Bergdahl is Badar’udin Haqqani, the son of the Haqqani leader, Jalaluddin Haqqani. The Haqqani are aligned with the Taliban and are the people who held Bergdahl for five years. Badar’udin Haqqani was killed in an attack in 2012.

Exceptional article from Elliott Abrams outlining President Obama’s abject failure in the Middle East and the risks he has created.   Make sure to read the entire article – well recommended.

(Via Politico) There’s always Tunisia. Amid the smoking ruins of the Middle East, there is that one encouraging success story. But unfortunately for the Obama narratives, the president had about as much as to do with Tunisia’s turn toward democracy as he did with the World Cup rankings. Where administration policy has had an impact, the story is one of failure and danger.
The Middle East that Obama inherited in 2009 was largely at peace, for the surge in Iraq had beaten down the al Qaeda-linked groups. U.S. relations with traditional allies in the Gulf, Jordan, Israel and Egypt were very good. Iran was contained, its Revolutionary Guard forces at home. Today, terrorism has metastasized in Syria and Iraq, Jordan is at risk, the humanitarian toll is staggering, terrorist groups are growing fast and relations with U.S. allies are strained. (more…)

Actually, this lap of luxury approach might just work. If they get them used to exclusive indulgences the Taliban 5 might just get so used to it they’ll never be able to think about living in the rough rock tribal regions of Pakistan/Afghanistan ever again.

The White House and State Department can claim they “don’t know” the details, but the military did; and thanks to Big Mama Tea, and WikiLeaks, you can read the military intelligence reports for yourself and see exactly what was going on in the area around his unit.

The Taliban captured him a day after he walked off base.  Ironically while he was taking a sh!t, and they didn’t let him wipe himself.  Initially the Taliban requested a 15:1 swap and money.   Afghan tribal leaders acted as liaisons in the initial days of Bergdahl’s capture.

It’s really eye opening to read the actual Military Intelligence surrounding the initial search for him.   Everything his squad has said publically over the past week is confirmed in these original 8 pages of military reports.

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