Thread: CIA to take over drones in Yemen

Originally Posted by States Rights

It appears that the CIA will take control of the drones in Yemen. What this means is that drone strikes will not have to be approved by the government of Yemen

That pretty much fits with what Harold Koh is saying with regard to Libya and the War Powers Resolution. The admin idea is that since we aren't using physical troops in these places then the actions don't require congressional approval. It's really kind of a stunning assertion.

But in a good way..

Originally Posted by Traveler

But in a good way..

No, not in a good way, Traveler. I went into this in a little more detail in another thread so I won't rehash it here but it's starting to look more and more like our CiC has decided that munitions capable drone aircraft give him lots and lots of leeway to carry out hostile actions without legal ramifications.

I'm starting to get the impression that Obama is very much detached from the realities of combat and only considers his actions in that arena as an academic exercise.

Yeah we'll stick to one thread about it i guess - my posting about the unitary executor and the power the President should weild is probably gonna come off as unhinged if i start to do it everywhere...

But seriously, you think he needs to go to Congress for a few drone strikes here and there? Modern day foreign policy is about nation building and interventionism - not isolationism, and Obama is doing an excellent job at showing it is something we can have bi-partisanship on.

Yeah, why the hell are they telling us this?

Originally Posted by Traveler

But in a good way..

No, not in a good way. It's a way of ignorance and stupidity.

Originally Posted by States Rights

It appears that the CIA will take control of the drones in Yemen. What this means is that drone strikes will not have to be approved by the government of Yemen

When a group of Saudi Arabians flew planes into the Twin Towers, President Bush described these acts as "cowardly", as did Rudy Giuliani and others;
The Rhetoric of 9/11: President George W. Bush Remarks at Barksdale AFB on 9-11-01
and when a suicide bomber detonates a bomb in his vest among a group of US soldiers, this is also often described as a "cowardly act". Could killing people with unmanned Predator drones, whether they are controlled from Creech Air Force base in Nevada, or by the CIA in Langley, be considered "cowardly"?

Would the use of drones be cowardly if Muslims did it?

Originally Posted by lutherf

No, not in a good way, Traveler. I went into this in a little more detail in another thread so I won't rehash it here but it's starting to look more and more like our CiC has decided that munitions capable drone aircraft give him lots and lots of leeway to carry out hostile actions without legal ramifications.

I'm starting to get the impression that Obama is very much detached from the realities of combat and only considers his actions in that arena as an academic exercise.

I think it is more to do with the fact that Obama does not believe in massive war campaigns but rather clandestine operations and logistical support for NATO actions. There types of operations a cheaper and more effective and they minimize our footprint in the region.

Sending in troops is so yesterday. Welcome to global conflict 2.0. Obama seems to be more savvy than any president before hm and is looking to change the way we handle conflict around the world and I am behind his decisions on this 100%. He is actually making the right ones here.

When a group of Saudi Arabians flew planes into the Twin Towers, President Bush described these acts as "cowardly", as did Rudy Giuliani and others;
The Rhetoric of 9/11: President George W. Bush Remarks at Barksdale AFB on 9-11-01
and when a suicide bomber detonates a bomb in his vest among a group of US soldiers, this is also often described as a "cowardly act". Could killing people with unmanned Predator drones, whether they are controlled from Creech Air Force base in Nevada, or by the CIA in Langley, be considered "cowardly"?

Would the use of drones be cowardly if Muslims did it?

The difference is that the terrorists came here unprovoked out of pure hatred for the American way of life, specifically targeting non-combatant civilians. The drone strikes are the response and if a few innocent lives die while we are targeting legitimate enemies. So be it. You cannot make an omelet without breaking a few eggs.

Originally Posted by Tom Palven

When a group of Saudi Arabians flew planes into the Twin Towers, President Bush described these acts as "cowardly", as did Rudy Giuliani and others;
The Rhetoric of 9/11: President George W. Bush Remarks at Barksdale AFB on 9-11-01
and when a suicide bomber detonates a bomb in his vest among a group of US soldiers, this is also often described as a "cowardly act". Could killing people with unmanned Predator drones, whether they are controlled from Creech Air Force base in Nevada, or by the CIA in Langley, be considered "cowardly"?
Would the use of drones be cowardly if Muslims did it?

First, let me ask you a question....Do you approve of the actions of Muslim extremist?
Now, to answer your question, no it would not be cowardly if Muslims extremist used drones to attack military targets. Now a preemptive strike.....In time of war there is collateral damage to the civilian population when a countries infrastructure is attacked to limit that countries means of carrying out their military aggression or an attempt to convince those in power to cease and desist their military aggression against another nation (reference is to the atomic weapons dropped during WWII). Do you see any coloration to the above and the current policy of the Muslim extremist current actions?

Originally Posted by TomBlaze

I think it is more to do with the fact that Obama does not believe in massive war campaigns but rather clandestine operations and logistical support for NATO actions. There types of operations a cheaper and more effective and they minimize our footprint in the region.

Sending in troops is so yesterday. Welcome to global conflict 2.0. Obama seems to be more savvy than any president before hm and is looking to change the way we handle conflict around the world and I am behind his decisions on this 100%. He is actually making the right ones here.



The difference is that the terrorists came here unprovoked out of pure hatred for the American way of life, specifically targeting non-combatant civilians. The drone strikes are the response and if a few innocent lives die while we are targeting legitimate enemies. So be it. You cannot make an omelet without breaking a few eggs.

I don't think that bin Laden and others would say they they were unprovoked. Correct me if I'm wrong, but it seems that the US talks about democracy, but overthrew the only democratically-elected Muslim government in the Mid-East with Operation AjaxWhat was Operation Ajax?
while at the same time aiding and abetting the dictators of Egypt, Yemen, and Bahrain, and the repressive kings of Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Morocco, among others, and continually vetoes UN calls for Israel to stop expanding settlements in occupied Palestinian territory.

Originally Posted by TomBlaze

I think it is more to do with the fact that Obama does not believe in massive war campaigns but rather clandestine operations and logistical support for NATO actions. There types of operations a cheaper and more effective and they minimize our footprint in the region.

Sending in troops is so yesterday. Welcome to global conflict 2.0. Obama seems to be more savvy than any president before hm and is looking to change the way we handle conflict around the world and I am behind his decisions on this 100%. He is actually making the right ones here.



The difference is that the terrorists came here unprovoked out of pure hatred for the American way of life, specifically targeting non-combatant civilians. The drone strikes are the response and if a few innocent lives die while we are targeting legitimate enemies. So be it. You cannot make an omelet without breaking a few eggs.

I'm surprised, TomBlaze. That is very right-wing thinking you have going on there.

Originally Posted by Tom Palven

I don't think that bin Laden and others would say they they were unprovoked. Correct me if I'm wrong, but it seems that the US talks about democracy, but overthrew the only democratically-elected Muslim government in the Mid-East with Operation AjaxWhat was Operation Ajax?
.

Oh yeah Mohammad Mossadegh was a sparkling icon of democracy and representative government when after being given complete control of the military by the Shah he pressed the parliament to give him the right "to decree any law he felt necessary for obtaining not only financial solvency, but also electoral, judicial, and educational reforms". Tyrants coming to power through election(and re-installment following resignation) are still tyrants even when they are fighting imperialism.

Originally Posted by JDJarvis

Oh yeah Mohammad Mossadegh was a sparkling icon of democracy and representative government when after being given complete control of the military by the Shah he pressed the parliament to give him the right "to decree any law he felt necessary for obtaining not only financial solvency, but also electoral, judicial, and educational reforms". Tyrants coming to power through election(and re-installment following resignation) are still tyrants even when they are fighting imperialism.

Seriously?
You are going to try to shine up that turd (replacing an elected government with a brutal dictator) to make it look like an apple?