Obama and the Continuation of Bush Policies

I've caught a lot of heat from some of Mr. Obama's most ardent supporters, with most claiming that I am trying to say the new President is just like the old President.

My point in all of this has not been to criticize Mr. Obama. In fact, it has been quite the opposite. What many fail to realize is that U.S. foreign policy remains relatively constant from President to President, and I view the continuation of some of Mr. Bush's policies by Mr. Obama as intelligent and prudent given the threats we as a nation are faced with. There is a world of difference between running for President and being President, as Mr. Obama is clearly pointing out through his rhetoric and actions since his inauguration.

From the New York Times February 17:

"WASHINGTON - Even as it pulls back from harsh interrogations and other sharply debated aspects of George W. Bush's 'war on terrorism,' the Obama administration is quietly signaling continued support for other major elements of its predecessor's approach to fighting Al Qaeda."

"In little-noticed confirmation testimony recently, Obama nominees endorsed continuing the C.I.A.'s program of transferring prisoners to other countries without legal rights, and indefinitely detaining terrorism suspects without trials even if they were arrested far from a war zone."

Additionally, The Times notes, "The administration has also embraced the Bush legal team's arguments that a lawsuit by former C.I.A. detainees should be shut down based on the 'state secrets' doctrine. It has also left the door open to resuming military commission trials."

The Times says these and other actions by the administration could indicate less change than many Obama supporters had hoped for or had believed would occur. Before anyone gets upset, this approach by the Obama administration is not unexpected, nor is it unwise. A cautious approach that looks at all options available for the fight against terrorism is the only really sensible choice. That will inevitably mean continuing some policies that the Bush administration was criticized for.

"Within days of his inauguration, Mr. Obama thrilled civil liberties groups when he issued executive orders promising less secrecy, restricting C.I.A. interrogators to Army Field Manual techniques, shuttering the agency's secret prisons, ordering the prison at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, closed within a year and halting military commission trials."

"But in more recent weeks, things have become murkier."

The Times goes on to point out testimony by the nominee for solicitor general, Elena Kagan, and by CIA director Leon Panetta and Attorney General Eric Holder that support Bush policies regarding detention and interrogation.

"Civil liberties groups praise Mr. Obama's early executive orders on national security, but say other signs are discouraging." The Times quotes Margaret Satterthwaite of the human rights center at NYU's school of law as saying (with regard to the state secrets case), "It was literally just Bush redux - exactly the same legal arguments that we saw the Bush administration present to the court."

Those now questioning Mr. Obama's continued use of Bush policies must understand that the President has to do what's in the best interest of the country as a whole, and not just what's in the best interest of the party he is a member of.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/18/us/politics/18policy.html?ref=us