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Quote by Michael Hastings

“Inside the White House there were always extreme amounts of doubt about whether they should be escalating in Afghanistan. In fact, most of the president's advisers said, "This is probably not going to work." A lot of people in the military said, "This is probably not going to work." If the thumbnail version of the Iraq war was that George W.Bush lied about mass destruction weapons, the thumbnail version of Barack Obama's war in Afghanistan is that the generals pushed him into a war he didn't want to fight.”

Author

Michael Hastings

Michael Hastings (January 28, 1980 - June 18, 2013) was an American journalist known for his in-depth reporting on political and military issues. He gained recognition for his coverage of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, particularly for his revealing reports on the misconduct of U.S. military operations. Hastings' work often exposed government misdeeds and the truth behind military actions, having a significant impact on public opinion. more

“The military sensed weakness, exploited it and played Barack Obama. Obama's foreign policy has been consistently hawkish despite this reluctant warrior schtick that he pulls. But at the end of the day a reluctant warrior is still a warrior. Look at the drone strikes, the tripling of the war in Afghanistan, and now Libya. I'm convinced that had Obama been in the Senate in 2003 he would have voted for the Iraq war. He's clearly easily convinced by his advisers and the Pentagon.”

War Military Policy Weakness Warrior Barack Afghanistan Foreign Policy Consistently Iraq War

Author:Michael Hastings

“It was interesting watching the Afghanistan war review deliberations, this three-month process where Barack Obama did the most thorough foreign policy review ever by a modern American president. Compare that to Libya. For a month he said we weren't going to do anything, then suddenly changed his mind and did it on the fly. My view is that it's not how long or quick you take to make a decision, it's whether you make the right one.”

Mind Long War President Decision Interesting Modern Policy Changed Barack Compare Afghanistan Foreign Policy Thorough American President

Author:Michael Hastings

“The humanitarian argument is so selective I find it difficult to swallow. It's not even so much about the choice as to where we should get involved and where we shouldn't. The minute you start arming people in these conflict zones, like Iraq and Afghanistan, things don't go as expected.”

People Choices Difficult Conflict Argument Humanitarian Zone Afghanistan Get Involved

Author:Michael Hastings

“We also need to look at precedent before making these decisions. Instead of listening to Muammar Qaddafi's rhetoric, we should look at how he's behaved. The fact is he's been making concessions recently. He gave up his nuclear weapons. He allowed hundreds of Americans to evacuate Tripoli. Did he crack down on his people who revolted? Yes, but that's not so unusual. For me, it's always a failure of diplomacy. Our willingness to immediately turn to a military solution is disturbing.”

People Decision Military Listening Solutions Willingness Unusual Nuclear Weapons Rhetoric Diplomacy Gave Up

Author:Michael Hastings