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[DJ]

He's just gonna disband the Senate till the rebellion has been quelled.

[PTTG??]

You want to know what I predict? The republicans will swear that they will get him out of office, and the democrats will swear to fight it to the last man, and neither of them will actually do anything about it.

[MetalSlimeHunt]

Obama does have some enemies among the Democrats.

[Bouchart]

The House has already voted to de-fund the Libya operation but who knows what will happen to that bill in the Senate.

[Bouchart]

Man, we're not agreeing on ANYTHING lately. 

Destabilizing the PRC is about the worst fucking thing on the planet right now. With the global economy more or less fucked, our best hope is that the countries who are still growing act like a tugboat and tug our asses back to some semblance of normality. Human rights frankly don't mean shit if 1/3 of the population is starving (like in the 60's) and another 1/3 is streaming into every other country in range. The refugee situation from Guangdong alone would swamp Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, and Thailand.

China's recent failed bond auction is a sign that China's growth has basically stopped.

[Bouchart]

Man, we're not agreeing on ANYTHING lately. 

Destabilizing the PRC is about the worst fucking thing on the planet right now. With the global economy more or less fucked, our best hope is that the countries who are still growing act like a tugboat and tug our asses back to some semblance of normality. Human rights frankly don't mean shit if 1/3 of the population is starving (like in the 60's) and another 1/3 is streaming into every other country in range. The refugee situation from Guangdong alone would swamp Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, and Thailand.

China's recent failed bond auction is a sign that China's growth has basically stopped.

[Luke_Prowler]

He's just gonna disband the Senate till the rebellion has been quelled.

All hail Caesar?

[inteuniso]

History repeats itself all the time, my friend.

[Phmcw]

I am slightly annoyed Obama isn't seeking congressional approval for his military action in Libya, clearly violating the War Powers Act.

Especially since it's a rather unimportant war for the US, and one where he's been dragged in in the first place. US could just provide logistical support or something. Maybe there is a secret treaty somewhere who bind his hands. I know Belgium has to accept transit in Antwerpen for Irak because of one.

[Sheb]

Still, he asked for approval by the UN and not Congress? I know Congress republican are ass (Democrats too, but they're supposed to be on his side) but I'm pretty sure he could have got their spport anyway.

[nenjin]

You think wrong. The reason is three fold. One, we're broke and sick of war as a nation. Two, Republicans only care about getting involved in foreign conflicts if someone is shooting at Americans or are threatening our assets and top allies. They don't care about non-American struggles for independence, unless a victory would screw over a power that we're afraid of.

And three, they just plain hate Obama and will nay say even the things they agree might be good. With elections in the US now only a  little more than a year away, virtually all legislation is being viewed in terms of how it will enhance or hurt the parties chances of winning the White House. Any measure of approval Republicans give Obama makes them look weak to their base, and looks like a + mark on Obama's "What I did with my 4 years in the White House" scoreboard.

Obama didn't seek Congressional approval because he knows that both Republicans and Democrats would have rejected it. The irony is all this BS is on par with the level of warfare we've waged previously without a lick of congressional approval. Unlike previous administrations, Obama was committed to acting publicly when acting covertly may have been far more prudent. People will disagree about his motives for that. His supporters will say he's fulfilling our commitment to supporting fledgling democratic movements with something other than black ops and weapons. His detractors will claim it's just a PR move and/or stupid and reckless.

[Bouchart]

So why are we in Libya but not Syria?

[Phmcw]

Yup, but why would have he wanted to go to war in the first place : Europe was on it. Of course the state of our armies....
Let's say we discovered that we hadn't any decent ground attack airplane and that we fallen short of munitions, but we could just have bought those to US or something.

Maybe for the PR... but then he should have sought congress approval. I don't know.

So why are we in Libya but not Syria?

Because we can hardly manage Lybia? And that we have to be VERY careful about what we do in the region?
Our government have all played dirty tricks in north Africa, and aren't liked. There is people there thankful to European and American people, but none who trust our governments, and they are right.

[nenjin]

So why are we in Libya but not Syria?

Because Syria is a far more volatile situation in the heart of the Arab world. Can you imagine how the entire Muslim world would flip the fuck out if American jets started bombing targets in Syria? We're just now starting to disengage from Iraq, and Obama doesn't have the kind of political capital to put us back in the Middle East in force. I doubt anyone does.

Saying you care about democratic struggles outside the US doesn't mean you should dive in without considering the political implications abroad and at home for doing so.

[Nikov]

So why did Obama even bother with Libya?