President Obama explains a 2007 remark on war

[somone]

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/wire/sc-dc-0330-obama-20110329,0,417277.story

President Obama explains a 2007 remark on war

WASHINGTON — President Obama, explaining why he didn't seek authorization from Congress to launch airstrikes on Libya, said Tuesday that he had to "move quickly to save lives" as Libyan leader Moammar Kadafi's forces advanced on civilians.

Obama differentiated the no fly zone in Libya from the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq, which he frequently criticized as a U.S. senator and a presidential candidate. In 2007, while criticizing the handling of the Iraq war as a White House hopeful, Obama said presidents can only personally authorize a military attack in order to stop an "actual or imminent threat to the nation."

"The key point here is that this is not a situation analogous to Iraq, in which we are devoting ground troops and a long protracted battle that puts American lives at risk," Obama said in an interview with NBC News, according to a transcript released by the network. "For us to take this limited action, limited both in time and scope … I think was the right thing to do."

The interview was the first time Obama has responded to a direct question about his comment from 2007 concerning the president's constitutional authority to conduct military action. Obama taped a series of conversations with network anchors on Tuesday as part of his administration's push to justify the military attacks in Libya.

On Monday, Obama delivered his first extended remarks since the airstrikes began. Obama traveled to New York on Tuesday for the interviews and to appear at Democratic fundraisers in the evening...

[David__77]

1. I think he should be pounded on that point.

He cannot adequately explain it without an "I was again it until I was for it" moment.

[truedelphi]

2. Seems like you are hitting the nail on the head

But then, the guy often is not caring about consistency.

[Catherina]

3. But he had time to consult with the 22 nations of the Arab League

28 member nations of NATO, 15 members of the UN Security Council, everyone but the US Congress? His excuse is incredibly lame.