The Incredible Shrinking President

From Walter Russell Mead, at the New York Daily News:

It wasn’t supposed to be like this.

Less than two years after voters gave President Barack Obama a strong mandate for a second term, the White House is struggling against perceptions that it is losing its grip.

At home, the bungled rollout of the Obamacare website and the shocking revelations about an entrenched culture of incompetence and fraud in the VA have undercut faith in the President’s managerial competency.

Abroad, a surging Russia, an aggressive China, a war torn Middle East and a resurgent terror network are putting his foreign policy credentials to the test. With the GOP hoping to seize control of the Senate in November’s midterm elections, and the inevitable decline in presidential power that occurs as second term presidents move toward lame-duck status, Obama risks being sidelined and marginalized for the remaining two years of his term.

Last week’s tempest over the Bergdahl exchange seemed to roll all the President’s troubles together into a single storm. The decision to free five Taliban fighters from Guantanamo in exchange for an American soldier with a complicated past energized the President’s opponents, befuddled and angered important Congressional allies, and renewed questions about the political instincts of the President and his closest aides. The White House apparently thought that the release would be a moment of national unity and celebration and arranged for Sgt. Bergdahl’s parents to meet Obama in a highly publicized Rose Garden ceremony that now looks like a huge political blunder...

Keep reading.

Obama Weighs Direct Action Against Insurgents in #Iraq

Well, good thing.

At the Los Angeles Times:

Facing the threat of sectarian conflict engulfing the Middle East, President Obama indicated Thursday that he may order direct military action in Iraq, a step he has ruled out since the U.S. ended its long war there.

A number of former administration officials and private analysts have been urging drone or airstrikes on the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), an Al Qaeda-inspired militant group whose fighters were sweeping toward Baghdad. In an Oval Office appearance, Obama said the militants' gains indicate "Iraq's going to need more help" from the United States and other nations.

Asked whether he would consider airstrikes, Obama said "I don't rule out anything," adding that in the continuing U.S. collaboration with the Iraqi government "there will be some short-term immediate things that need to be done militarily."

I don't think he'll make the call.

More, in any case.

Obama's Iraq

From Max Boot, at the Weekly Standard, "Mosul Has Fallen, and al Qaeda Is on the March Towards Baghdad":

Mosul, Iraq’s second-largest city, has long been hard for the central government to control because of its combustible mix of Arabs and Kurds. The first time I visited Mosul was in August 2003 when a tenuous calm was maintained by the 101st Airborne Division. Its commander, a then-obscure two-star general named David Petraeus, had on his own initiative opened the Syrian border to trade, struck deals with Syria and Turkey to provide badly needed electricity, restored telephone service, and held elections to elect local leaders. Along the way he also managed to kill Saddam Hussein’s poisonous offspring Uday and Qusay.

This kept militants at bay, but they returned with a vengeance after the 101st pulled out in 2004, to be replaced by a smaller American unit whose officers were less attuned to the demands of civic action. Mosul became a hotbed of Saddamist and Islamist militants, as I saw for myself in February 2008 when, during another visit, the U.S. Army convoy in which I was riding was hit by a “complex ambush”: The Humvee in front of mine hit a bomb concealed in a big puddle, and insurgents opened machine gun fire from the left. Luckily no one in our unit was hurt, but a bystander had his arm sliced off by a flying piece of the Humvee’s engine.

Mosul was the last major city to be pacified by the successful “surge.” It took until at least 2010 before it was secure. But now that achievement has been undone. Black-clad fighters from the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), as Al Qaeda in Iraq has rebranded itself, stormed into Mosul last week and seized control. Dispirited Iraqi soldiers ran away rather than fight. Many were so eager to escape that their discarded uniforms littered the streets. ISIS freed more than 2,000 of its fighters from prisons and seized copious stocks of money, ammunition, and weapons—many of the latter provided by the United States to Iraqi forces.

This was only the latest and most alarming advance for this extremist group, which has risen out of its grave to display dismaying strength in recent years. In January, ISIS seized Fallujah and holds it still—a loss that, like Mosul, is particularly painful to American veterans who sacrificed so much to wrest control of those cities from militants. Following up on their success in Mosul, ISIS fighters advanced south to seize, at least temporarily, Tikrit, Saddam -Hussein’s hometown, and Baiji, home to Iraq’s largest oil refinery, which supplies Baghdad with much of its electricity. Their next targets are certain to be Baqubah and Baghdad. In the capital, ISIS has already inflicted devastating casualties with a series of car bombings. Iraq Body Count calculates that some 9,500 people were killed in Iraq last year, the highest total since 2008. Worse is surely yet to come as Shiite militant organizations such as Asaib Ahl al-Haq and Kataib Hezbollah respond to Sunni atrocities with atrocities of their own. 

This is not just a problem for Iraq. ISIS, as the name implies, has spread across the border into Syria, where it has been showing increasing strength amid the chaos of the Syrian civil war, in no small part because the United States has done so little to aid the non-jihadist opposition to Bashar al-Assad. ISIS is well on its way to carving out a fundamentalist caliphate that stretches from Aleppo in northern Syria to Mosul in northern Iraq. The post-World War I borders of the Middle East seem to be unraveling. Syria is being split into two entities, one controlled by Sunni Islamists, the other by Hezbollah and the Iranian Quds Force and their Alawite proxies. Iraq is being split into three, with a prosperous and stable Kurdish state, a fundamentalist Sunni Triangle state controlled by ISIS, and the Shiite portions of the country under the sway of militants backed by Iran. Iran is directly involved in the fighting in both countries: It has already sent Quds Force troops to Syria and now reportedly to Iraq as well. The only thing that remains to be determined is whether Shiite or Sunni extremists will control the capital—the new battle for Baghdad, which has already begun, is likely to be even bloodier than the previous installment from 2003 to 2008.

It is hard to exaggerate how much of a disaster this is, not only for Syria and Iraq and their neighbors, but for the United States...

 More.

While #Iraq Falls to al Qaeda, Obama is Off to Fundraise and Play Golf in Palm Springs

From Marooned in Marin:

While the al-Qaeda-linked ISIS is closing in on Baghdad and the Middle East falls into chaos and flames, it appears this crisis won't stop Richard Milhous Obama from two of his favorite pastimes...fundraising for the Party of Treason (Democrats) and a few rounds of golf in Palm Springs, CA (The Press Enterprise).

President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama land at Palm Springs International Airport just after 6 p.m. Friday, straight from a visit to the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation in North Dakota.

At 8:25 a.m. Saturday, they’ll jump over to Laguna Beach for a Democratic National Committee fundraiser, followed by the commencement address to UC Irvine’s Class of 2014 at Angel Stadium.

The Obamas will return to the desert by about 2:10 p.m. Saturday, staying for Father’s Day, before flying home to Washington, D.C., about 10 a.m. Monday.

It’s unclear if their daughters, Malia and Sasha, will tag along. What is Obama’s plan here in the Coachella Valley? Presumably a short vacation, and likely a round of golf or two – though the details remain fuzzy...

More.

Americans Being Evacuated from Iraqi Airbase as Militants Advance

At Weasel Zippers.

Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi

From Michael Koziol, at the Sydney Morning Herald, "Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi shows why he's the world's most dangerous man":

Baghdadi was an AQI commander who evaded US capture in Iraq and later moved into Syria. There has been a $US10 million bounty on his head since 2011, and Time magazine labelled him "the world's most dangerous man".

ISIL fighters are a major component of the rebels fighting Bashar al-Assad's regime in Syria. The Economist has described the group as "one of the best-equipped and funded militias on the ground", with perhaps 7000 fighters.

It is a hardline, Sunni Muslim militia that kills civilians without much care. Its brutality has alienated ISIL from other rebels fighting the Assad regime. It seeks a single Islamic state under sharia, not just in Syria but across the Levant and in Iraq. On Tuesday it conquered Mosul, Iraq's second-biggest city of almost 2 million, which stands about 114 kilometres from the Syrian border in the north of Iraq.

More.

And at Flopping Aces, "ISIS Terror Leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi Was Released by Obama From Camp Bucca in 2009."

Squandered Sacrifice in #Iraq

At Instapundit, "Veterans Watch as Iraq Teeters on the Brink."

Fresno Man Killed Within Hours of Being Mistakenly Freed from Incarceration

I read about the man's release last night, and now here's this. Pretty freakin' bizarre.

At the Fresno Bee, "Fresno felon slain minutes after jail release on jury's mistake; suspect arrested."

#ISIS Threatens to Invade Jordan, 'Slaughter' King Abdullah

Well, Jordan's a key piece of the Levant, so it makes sense.

At Blazing Cat Fur:

The recent victories in Iraq and Syria by the terrorists of ISIS -- said to be an offshoot of al-Qaeda -- have emboldened the group and its followers throughout the Middle East. Now the terrorists are planning to move their jihad not only to Jordan, but also to the Gaza Strip, Sinai and Lebanon...

#Iraq Girds as #ISIS Incursion Pushes on Baghdad

The battle is nigh.

At WSJ, "Iraq Girds to Defend Capital Baghdad: Move Comes as Forces of the Shiite-Dominated Government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki Abandon Posts and Flee, Provincial Official Says":

Iraq's government girded to protect the capital from advancing insurgents, as Iranian security officials said their forces had joined the battle on Baghdad's side and the U.S. weighed military assistance, including airstrikes.  Iraq edged closer to all-out sectarian conflict as Kurdish forces took control of a provincial capital in the oil-rich north on Thursday and Sunni militants threatened to march on two cities revered by Shiite Muslims and the capital.

"What we have seen over the last couple of days indicates the degree to which Iraq is going to need more help—more help from us and more help from the international community," President Barack Obama said from the Oval Office. "My team is working around the clock to identify how we can provide the most effective assistance to them," he added. "I don't rule out anything."

The deteriorating situation in Iraq—a key global oil supplier—reverberated through financial markets Thursday, sending oil prices sharply higher, pushing U.S. stocks lower and igniting the latest rally in safe-haven bonds.

Faced with the threat of Sunni extremists eclipsing the power of Iraq's Shiite-dominated rulers, Shiite Iran sprang into action to aid its besieged Arab ally. It deployed Revolutionary Guards units to Iraq, Iranian security sources said. At least three battalions of the Quds Forces, the overseas branch of the Guards, were dispatched, the security sources said.

Some U.S. military officials cast doubt on the report that battalions of Iranian Quds Forces had deployed to Iraq, saying only militias controlled by or allied with Iran have been mobilized to fight alongside Iraqi forces.  One Revolutionary Guards unit that was already in Iraq fought alongside the Iraqi army against the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham, an offshoot of al Qaeda rapidly gaining territory across Iraq, the security sources said.

They offered guerrilla-warfare advice and tactics and helped to reclaim most of the city of Tikrit on Thursday, the security sources said. Two units, dispatched from Iran's western border provinces on Wednesday, were tasked with protecting Baghdad and the holy Shiite cities of Karbala and Najaf, they said.

Gen. Qasem Sulaimani, the commander of the Quds Forces and one of the region's most powerful military figures, traveled to Baghdad this week to help manage the swelling crisis, said a member of the Revolutionary Guards.

With Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's government proving incapable of containing the widening strife, Iraq's mosaic of ethnic and religious groups has become combustible, as each is forced to take steps to defend its security. The prime minister's office has not responded to repeated requests for comment...

More.

And see London's Daily Mail, "ISIS butchers leave 'roads lined with decapitated police and soldiers': Battle for Baghdad looms as thousands answer Iraqi government's call to arms and jihadists bear down on capital."

America's Legacy in Iraq

From Dexter Filkins, at the New Yorker, "In Extremists' Iraq Rise, America's Legacy":

When the Americans invaded, in March, 2003, they destroyed the Iraqi state—its military, its bureaucracy, its police force, and most everything else that might hold a country together. They spent the next nine years trying to build a state to replace the one they crushed. By 2011, by any reasonable measure, the Americans had made a lot of headway but were not finished with the job. For many months, the Obama and Maliki governments talked about keeping a residual force of American troops in Iraq, who would act largely to train Iraq’s Army and to provide intelligence against Sunni insurgents. (They would almost certainly have been barred from fighting.) Those were important reasons to stay, but the most important went largely unstated: it was to continue to act as a restraint on Maliki’s sectarian impulses, at least until the Iraqi political system was strong enough to contain him on its own. The negotiations between Obama and Maliki fell apart, in no small measure because of a lack of engagement by the White House. Today, many Iraqis, including some close to Maliki, say that a small force of American soldiers—working in non-combat roles—would have provided a crucial stabilizing factor that is now missing from Iraq. Sami al-Askari, a Maliki confidant, told me for my article this spring, “If you had a few hundred here, not even a few thousand, they would be coöperating with you, and they would become your partners.” President Obama wanted the Americans to come home, and Maliki didn’t particularly want them to stay.

The trouble is, as the events of this week show, what the Americans left behind was an Iraqi state that was not able to stand on its own. What we built is now coming apart. This is the real legacy of America’s war in Iraq.

Extremely perceptive piece. Be sure to RTWT.

And notice how Filkins, implicitly, just demolishes the idiot LGM ghoul Robert Farley, who claimed that a U.S. residual force would have been helpless in tamping down the return of civil war in Iraq.

Filkins is the author of The Forever War.

Leftists Spew 'Tolerant' Sexist Misogyny as Dana Loesch Releases 'Hands Off My Gun' Book Cover

Check Dana's Twitter timeline for some of the disgusting attacks, here and here, example.

But see Twitchy, "‘Can’t wait for this one’! Dana Loesch reveals cover of upcoming book [pic]."

Senator John McCain Slams Obama's Foreign Policy Team

From Molly Wharton, at National Review, "McCain: Obama Needs a New National-Security Team."



And from Jim Geraghty, "The Coming ‘There’s Nothing We Could Have Done’ Excuses."

Joanna May Parker in Black Lingerie

Some afternoon babe blogging delight, via Egotastic!, "Joanna May Parker Black Lingerie Striptease for the Discreet Gentleman Ogler."

I like that "discreet gentleman"part, heh.

Twitter's COO Ali Rowghani Resigns After Dispute with Chief Executive Dick Costolo

Some business news, for a change of pace.

At WSJ, "Twitter's No. 2 Executive Resigns After Dispute With CEO: Ali Rowghani Departs After CEO Costolo Sought to Run Product Team Amid Slowing User Growth."

Goodbye Twitter. It's been an amazing ride, and I will cherish the memories.

— Ali Rowghani (@ROWGHANI) June 12, 2014

More at Techmeme, "Twitter COO Steps Down From Job on Twitter, But Stays as Strategic Advisor."

Hillary Clinton Gets Angry During NPR Exchange on Gay Marriage

More please, moar!

At Politico, "Hillary Clinton gets testy over gay marriage."

And from NPR, "Hillary Clinton: The Fresh Air Interview."

The audio's here, "Hillary Clinton Snaps at NPR Host After Defensive Gay Marriage Interview."

"I think you are very persistent but you are playing with my words."

Yeah, right.

And at BuzzFeed, "10 Times NPR's Terry Gross Tries to Get Hillary Clinton to Explain When She First Supported Marriage Equality."

PREVIOUSLY: "Hillary Clinton's 'Favorability' Collapsing Amid Lies and Chaos."

Traitor Bowe #Bergdahl Set to Return to the United States

At CNN, "Bowe Bergdahl returning to U.S. for more treatment after release."

Laura Ingraham Helped Propel Dave Brat's Campaign — #VA07

Laura Ingraham slams sham tea party "patriot" Jenny Beth Martin at the clip below.

And boy, Ingraham really racked up the creds with this insurgent win out of Virginia's 7th congressional district.

Even the far-left New York Times pumped and praised her impact on the race, "Potent Voices of Conservative Media Propelled Cantor Opponent: David Brat Was Aided by Influential Figures Like Laura Ingraham":

If Eric Cantor needed evidence that his political career was in real trouble, all he had to do was look outside his living room window one night last week. At a stately country club about half a mile from his home in the affluent Richmond suburb of Glen Allen, so many people had come to see the radio talk show host Laura Ingraham stump for Mr. Cantor’s opponent in the Republican primary, David Brat, that the overflow parking nearly reached his driveway.

Ms. Ingraham was so taken aback at the size of the crowd — inside the clubhouse, hundreds of people crammed onto staircase landings, leaned over railings and peered down at her from above — she wondered aloud what was really going on.

“We all looked at each other, saying, ‘He could totally win,'” Ms. Ingraham said in an interview. “I’ve had two moments in American politics in the last 15 years where I knew there was a big change afoot. One was when I left the Iowa caucuses in 2008. I walked out of there and said to a friend, ‘Barack Obama is going to win.’ And the other was when I left that rally last Tuesday.”

Few people did more than Ms. Ingraham to propel Mr. Brat, a 49-year-old economics professor who has never held elected office before, from obscurity to national conservative hero. And few stories better illustrate how his out-of-nowhere victory was due in large part to a unique and potent alignment of influential voices in conservative media.

Crucially, voices like Ms. Ingraham’s combined with shoe-leather, grass-roots campaign work by a highly organized local conservative movement to fill a void left by the absence of support from national Tea Party organizations and boldface Republican Party names.

Mr. Brat may have been turned away when he asked for financial support from well-funded conservative groups, and he was largely ignored by the national and local news media, which considered Mr. Cantor, the No. 2 Republican in the House, a shoo-in. But he was a known quantity to the loyal audiences of radio personalities like Ms. Ingraham and Mark Levin, a Reagan aide and a revered figure in the conservative movement, and Breitbart.com, the website founded by the provocateur Andrew Breitbart.

Together, Mr. Levin and Ms. Ingraham reach nearly 10 million people each week. And the Breitbart sites log 60 million page views each month. Those audiences are heavy with engaged, politically motivated voters who turn out in Republican primaries — the kind of voters who came out for Mr. Brat on Tuesday.  “Of the 70,000 voters yesterday in Virginia, I am sure 95 percent go to Drudge, Breitbart, Mark Levin or Laura Ingraham every day, multiple times a day,” said Stephen K. Bannon, who wears many hats as a radio host, a filmmaker and the executive chairman of Breitbart.

More.

FLASHBACK: "Jenny Beth Martin Makes More the $450,000 Annually as National Coordinator of Tea Party Patriots!"

#Obama Regime Knew About Secret #VeteransAdministration Wait Lists for Years

Of course they knew. It's all lies with this White House, and they simply do not care.

At the Daily Caller, "Obama Administration Knew About VA's Secret Wait Lists for Years."

Joseph Biden in 2010: #Iraq Will Be 'One of the Great Achievements' of Obama Administration

Via Breitbart.

And Twitchy, "‘Oh, man’: This Biden flashback on Iraq is nothing short of ‘brutal’ [video]."

Oh, man. This clip. https://t.co/yTVKFiEQrt

— John Ekdahl (@JohnEkdahl) June 12, 2014

Ironically, had the administration gotten a SOFA, it would have been one of their greatest achievements. Now, they've just squandered everything, put the U.S. and all of our allies in danger, because "the tide of war is receding" bullshit.