CHARLOTTE, January 8, 2013 ― President Obama is at it again.

Typical of his standard operating procedures, two of his most recent decisions slipped under the radar. The third will create significant bluster, but in the end the President will prevail and his loyal followers will call it a bipartisan move.

The most visible and vocally opposed Obama maneuver is proposing former Senator Chuck Hagel as the next secretary of defense. The Republican from Nebraska is a lightning rod for the pro-Israel groups who have been highly critical of his stance on Israel’s influence in Washington as well as current policies toward Iran.

Some pro-Obama media outlets have called the appointment an effort to build a bridge between the two political parties, an exercise in bipartisanship.

Senator Lindsey Graham from South Carolina called it an “in your face appointment” in an “in your face second term” for Obama. Graham also noted that Hagel has refused to admit that Hezballah, the militant Muslim group headquartered in Lebanon, is a terrorist organization.

While Hagel was the first Republican to publicly criticize the war in Iraq, the greater concern among  many observers is the potential for increased tension between Washington and Tel Aviv over his appointment. Hagel has also consistently opposed any plans for military action against Iran.

During 2007 when Hagel was considering a run for the presidency, the National Jewish Democratic Council made it clear that the senator “has a lot of questions to answer about his commitment to Israel.”

So while Hagel threatens to alienate Israel, his appointment will appease radical Islamists.

Two other decisions by the Obama administration have been less noticeable, but nonetheless important for coddling radical jihadists.

In an article published January 4, the Associated Press reported the release of some 250 prisoners once held by the U.S. in Afghanistan in the hope that it will lead to reconciliation with the Taliban in the decade-long conflict in that country.

The Afghan High Peace Council, led by Police Major Jalal Uddin, has been given the task of obtaining a peace treaty with the Taliban and other militant groups before NATO withdraws from the country in 2014.

Thousands of prisoners had been held by the U.S. military in Bagram, near Kabul, until an agreement last March allowed more than 3,000 detainees to be transferred to Afghan control. Despite that, Afghan President Hamid Karzai has remained critical of the American military for continuing to keep some prisoners in custody.

In addition, 26 Taliban prisoners have been released by Pakistan during the past two months, another conciliatory measure.

There is a persistant belief within the Obama administration that if you are nice to jihadists, they will be nice to you. Forget about al Qaeda being dead or dying, as we were assured it was just prior to the attacks in Benghazi. Apparently we accept its continued existence, and hope that negotiation will sooth the jihadist heart. 

In an article in The Guardian, Nick Hopkins writes that a senior administration lawyer said, “The US is heading for a ‘tipping point’ beyond which it should no longer pursue al-Qaida terrorists by military means.”

This echoes the commentary we heard before the attacks in Libya that al Qaeda is no longer a threat. One reason for that belief may be that al Qaeda no longer exists in the form that it did when Osama bin Laden was in charge. Does that make terrorism any less dangerous to the civilized world?

Have we not already witnessed the president’s support of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt? Were we not told that the Muslim Brotherhood was no longer a terrorist organization because it had modified its doctrine in recent years? Has Obama not shown support for jihadists in other regions of the Middle East?

Any way you look at it, this is an Obama trifecta; an anti-Israeli secretary of defense, releasing Taliban prisoners in Afghanistan to make nice with the enemy and abandoning the idea that al Qaeda is a threat.

In an uncertain world, the Obama doctrine seems to be that we should do everything we can to make it even more unstable than it already is.

Peabod is Bob Taylor, owner of Taylored Media Services in Charlotte, NC. Taylor is founder of The Magellan Travel Club, which creates, and escorts customized tours to Switzerland, France and Italy for groups of 12 or more.

Inquiries for groups can be made at Peabod@aol.com Taylored Media has produced marketing videos for British Rail, Rail Europe, Switzerland Tourism, the Swedish Travel & Tourism Council, the Finnish Tourist Board, the Swiss Travel System and Japan Railways Group among others.

As author of The Century Club book, Peabod is now attempting to travel to 100 countries or more during his lifetime. To date he has visited 71 countries. Suggest someplace new for Bob to visit; if you want to know where he has been, check his list on Facebook. Bob plans to write a sequel to his book when he reaches his goal of 100 countries. He also played professional baseball for four years and was a sportscaster for 14 years at WBTV, the CBS affiliate in Charlotte.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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