Obama Blames DOD for Trip Cancellation
Jul 25, 2008 Military, Political
I wrote yesterday and the Conservative part of the Internet was abuzz with the story that Barack Obama had pulled out of a visit with wounded troops in Germany. My original piece discussed an issue with the DOD indicating that Obama could only go there in the capacity of a Senator and that campaign personnel could not accompany him. The DOD is saying that it only reminded the Senator of the law against campaigning on military installations and as part of that he could only bring Congressional staffers. He had to leave campaign staff and the media behind (the military would provide photographers). The DOD states that it left the decision as to whether to show or not up to Obama. We know what decision he made. The article indicates the DOD did not even make a judgment as to whether he was visiting or campaigning. It just reminded him of the rules.
“Sen. Obama is welcome to visit Landstuhl or any military hospital in his official capacity as a United States senator,” Morrell said in a brief interview. “But there is a DoD policy which governs campaigning and electioneering at military facilities that would have to be respected if he were to visit. That distinction was relayed and made clear to campaign, and they made a decision on their own based on that guidance.” Politico
But wait, there’s more. After the backlash of criticism for dissing the troops the Obama campaign has stated that they were told by the DOD not to show up. The campaign’s take on the situation is completely different than the one the DOD described. I am sure the DOD account is the accurate one. The DOD does not tell members of Congress that they cannot visit. They will tell them the guidelines, in this case the law, but they will not deny a member of Congress access to a DOD facility.
It would appear as if Obama wanted to visit the hospitals under the guise of being a visiting Senator but that he had plans to use the visit for the campaign. This would explain why he did not just leave his campaign staff and the MSM behind and make the trip. He wanted the MSM there to record his every move so that the film could later be used as a campaign ad to show how in touch with the troops he really is. When his bluff was called with the pesky rules, he decided not to go. Remember, Obama said in his speech that he was not there as a candidate for the presidency and then promptly sent an email about the speech asking for donations. He was there to campaign despite what he says (some of that speech will be used in campaign ads).
The decision not to go was entirely Obama’s. He had the opportunity to meet with wounded warriors and chose not to because he could not make it a campaign visit. The campaign’s attempt to shift the blame for this to the DOD is cowardly and irresponsible. It is a sign or poor leadership to abandon subordinates when the going gets tough or things do not go your way. Obama abandoned them on the battlefield a log time ago and now he has abandoned them during their recuperation from terrible injuries. This guy is not fit to be the leader of these fine men and women. Obama does not have the ability to take responsibility for his actions. It always has to be someone else’s fault.
That is not the DOD he knew…
Tags: blame game, dod, Obama, troop visit