What are some examples of President Obama being "experienced"?
Asked by
Cruiser (
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August 24th, 2011
Yesterday we had the opportunity to comment on Obamas inexperience so I thought it would be good to review some of the well executed efforts he has done to date. My snarky answer most here would expect from me would be on lowering his golf handicap, but this morning I was watching the “Morning Joe” show which is a conservative show and they had a guest who outlined Obamas foreign policies which he attributed to many successes we have been having in the Middle East with Libya as a notable example! I would have to assume most people are unaware as to the extensive efforts Obama has made specifically relating to covert operations this gentleman referred to. Again Libya is a great example in that since taking office apparently BO has given approval of extensive CIA, special ops and other secret activities along with unprecedented use of drones and other international spy missions more than any other President. One Special Ops commander commented that it was refreshing to finally be able to do the job they were trained to do and it has paid off considerably with not one “boot” on the ground in Libya. Plus he put a huge notch in his belt with the Bin Laden raid that really was a gutsy move…..Hats off to Barack for that one too!
And so what else do you lurve about him or see as something very positive that Barack has done so far in his term as President??
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19 Answers
I think there are more examples of Obama being smart, than experienced necessarily. I guess overt ime he is learning to deal with Washington, but all along I thought he was intelligent and willing to work with the Republicans where possible. I think his experience has taught him the other side is relentless. Probably he has also seen many Republicans who speak to the public in one way and differently behind the scenes, and honestly, I think Obama is beginning to do more of this too. Play the game a little more. I think his word choice in speeches is getting better at speaking to the left. I guess that is his experience showing. When I think experience I think experience in Washington specifically more than anything.
Calling Morning Joe a conservative show is pushing it. Joe is a conservative, but the show is balanced.
What sticks out for me was his decision-making process for the Afghanistan strategy, as reported in the NYT.
It’s a flawed strategy that is still changing (originally counterinsurgency, it’s morphed into more counter-terrorism with more emphasis on special ops and drone attacks). But what impressed me was how he asked questions and built consensus with his advisers. He didn’t rush into it, he didn’t use his “gut,” he looked at evidence and evaluated the situation from as many angles as possible.
And even though the final strategy is flawed, I don’t think a non-flawed strategy for Afghanistan was humanly possible. And the strategy has succeeded in vastly lowering NATO-inflicted civilian casualties, which is extremely impressive when you consider that we conquered Marja and Kandahar (both Taliban strongholds). Compare those operations to Fallujah in Iraq, where we killed 800–1,000 civilians and destroyed much of the city.
Obviously this doesn’t speak to any sort of military experience on Obama’s part; rather it is evidence of a “decision-making” or “managerial” experience, as well as experience in evaluating the facts about a complex situation.
He only has experience as a community organizer. That is all
@Roby That was a few years ago, well, he had been a senator too. Anyway, now he has experience as President.
@Cruiser Well, I felt he was very inexperienced also, so you don’t have to sell me. But, at this point he has made some big decisions as President.
He’s been president for close to 3 years.
@dverhey . . . best. answer. ever.
i love it when you’re posting man. long time no see.
@Cruiser, Obama voted “present” for 3 percent of his votes. That’s not “HUGE.” It’s also different from “passing.”
And why do you think his performance was abysmal as a senator?
Yup. This is why you should assume that Republicans are lying when they speak.
@bkcunningham Did I read the graph wrong, or was Obama much much better than the median average? I don’t think I understand that graph maybe.
He was much better at not being present for roll call votes.
Wait, I just looked at it again. I think I understand it now. There is 10% of congress that is really bad, but I wobder if it has to do with campaigning? Because the red line makes a steep turn upwards. They don’t show a line for Obama, so we don’t know from the graph if he missed a lot bevause he began to run for President. I need more information to draw a conclusion.
@JLeslie it’s not a coincidence that he started missing votes when he started campaigning for president.
And I’ve always been confused as to what the right-wing criticism is supposed to be here. He should have stayed a senator and not ran for president? He should have resigned as senator if he was going to run for president? McCain was just as absentee as Obama when he was running for prez.
@Qingu . . . doesn’t that all just prove that both sides are equally worthless?
@Blondesjon, both sides, understandably, spend significant time away from their day jobs campaigning for president, therefore both sides are “equally worthless”?
I don’t follow; walk me through your logic there.
@Qingu . . . Nah. I feel that, in context, my statement stands up quite well and is self explanatorily self explanatory.
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