Obama chooses willful blindness on Iraq wihdrawal

Gareth Porter:

CENTCOM commander Gen. David Petraeus, supported by Defence Secretary Robert Gates, tried to convince President Barack Obama that he had to back down from his campaign pledge to withdraw all U.S. combat troops from Iraq within 16 months at an Oval Office meeting Jan. 21.

But Obama informed Gates, Petraeus and Joint Chiefs Chairman Adm. Mike Mullen that he wasn't convinced and that he wanted Gates and the military leaders to come back quickly with a detailed 16-month plan, according to two sources who have talked with participants in the meeting.

...
There is much more.

It looks like Obama is still taking his military advice from MoveOn rather than those who know something about the subject. Throughout the campaign Obama demonstrated a profound ignorance on the use of force and military history and he appears to have learned nothing since.

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