Obama's shell game in the Middle East

[ElKabong]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/45093333/ns/world_news-the_new_york_times/#.Tq1D5mDb_Bw

I don't seem to recall a military build up in the M.E. region as a campaign promise.....So you pull out of Iraq, but strengthen US presence in the region "just in case" things in Iraq becomes unstable or worse after the pull out.

Yep, this was a well thought out campaign promise by the Community Organizer...

The plans, under discussion for months, gained new urgency after President Obama’s announcement this month that the last American soldiers would be brought home from Iraq by the end of December. Ending the eight-year war was a central pledge of his presidential campaign, but American military officers and diplomats, as well as officials of several countries in the region, worry that the withdrawal could leave instability or worse in its wake

[boxcar]

This reinforces what I said earlier that BO's orders to pull out of Iraq is strictly a political ploy to try to appease his base, which is looney tunes extreme left. The following expands a bit on Elk's story:

U.S. Planning Troop Buildup in Gulf After Exit From Iraq

In addition to negotiations over maintaining a ground combat presence in Kuwait, the United States is considering sending more naval warships through international waters in the region.

With an eye on the threat of a belligerent Iran, the administration is also seeking to expand military ties with the six nations in the Gulf Cooperation Council — Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Oman. While the United States has close bilateral military relationships with each, the administration and the military are trying to foster a new “security architecture” for the Persian Gulf that would integrate air and naval patrols and missile defense.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/30/world/middleeast/united-states-plans-post-iraq-troop-increase-in-persian-gulf.html?_r=3

The more things change, the more they stay the same. But hey...having a strong presence in the Middle East sure does help to cut down on travel time to Armageddon.

Boxcar