Terrorism Catches Up With Obama

Barack Obama has called the U.S. intelligence services on the carpet. Doing so is his attempt to regain the initiative on the security issue. Obama knows that his administration can’t afford any future blunders on national security.

Barack Obama started out with a stated mission to liberate America from the fear and fixation on terrorism prevalent during the Bush years. He did away with the term “war on terror.” He is still trying to close Guantanamo and brought other pressing questions to the forefront so that combating terrorism is now only one of several problems to be solved. That intention was shattered by the failed attack over Detroit. Even if America is ready to slowly close the curtain on this chapter in its history, it’s obvious the terrorists aren’t anywhere near ready to cooperate.

The very impression that Obama didn’t consider the subject of terror his number one priority was enough to put him in a difficult position. He could, of course, point out that the release of many of the Yemeni plotters from Guantanamo, and many of the intelligence failures in the run up to the attack, all happened during Bush’s administration. But the fact is, many of the fumbles U.S. security agencies have had to admit to in recent weeks show that this administration had dropped its guard in security matters. There were many signs pointing to the attack, but the administration failed to pull them all together.

Brute Force Isn’t Obama’s Style

Obama’s reaction was his attempt to regain the initiative on the national security debate. That’s always more difficult for Democratic presidents than it is for Republicans because they have to constantly defend against charges that they are soft on national security. This especially applies to Obama, who made it clear from the beginning that he wanted to distance his administration as much as possible from George W. Bush’s years in office.

It also especially applies to Obama because he often presents an intellectually divergent approach compared to Bush that many Americans interpret as a lack of red-hot passion. Brute force isn’t Obama’s style, a fact that makes him immensely popular outside the United States. But he realizes that his administration can’t afford any more blunders on the terrorism issue, and that’s why he’s being tough on his security czars.