Will Obama Turn Tail in Afganistan?

Super64 over Mogadishu

There are some interesting similarities between Obama’s Afghanistan and Clinton’s Somalia. Both new presidents inherited the foreign situation from their predecessor. Both have (or had) advisers who would rather pay off terrorists than fight them unless it brings political benefits.

When it came to Clinton, White House control — which inevitably meant changing missions and holding back military resources¹ — was a key contributor to the events that are well known from the book and movie Black Hawk Down.² After the events Clinton quickly turned tail and ran from Somalia.

The million vote question for Obama is, will he keep our fighting men from what they need until he has his Black Hawk Down moment, too? And if he were to do so, will he also turn tail like Clinton did?