ShareThis
by Yoly Tumangan Tubalinal.
May 16, 2011
When President Barrack Obama invited his predecessor, George W. Bush to join him on Ground Zero in honoring the memory of the victims of September 11 shortly after the killing of Osama bin Laden, the latter declined. The first news had it that the former president just wanted to continue with his quiet retirement, staying away from the spotlight, an attitude that spoke kindly of him.
Before long, however, a source tells the New York Daily News that former president George W. Bush feels that his successor has failed to sufficiently recognize the role he played in the manhunt for Osama bin Laden following the September 11, 2001 terror attacks.
Huffington Post reported that the source further suggested that Bush saw the president’s actions in the days following bin Laden’s death as an “Obama victory lap,” further stating that while Bush doesn’t feel personally snubbed and appreciates the invitation, but Obama’s claiming all the credit and a lot of other people deserve some of it.
“Obama gave no credit whatsoever to the intelligence infrastructure the Bush administration set up that is being hailed from the left and right as setting in motion the operation that got Bin Laden. It rubbed Bush the wrong way,” added the source.
Shortly after bin Laden’s death, debates on the subject of who should get the credit for it have continued to dominate the airwaves. There is no hiding the fact that this monumental feat, a defining moment of any presidency, is a big deal. If President Obama gets all the credit, it will make the GOP task of reclaiming the White House nearly impossible.
Politically, not getting a share of the credit for bin Laden’s death, will be disastrous for Bush’s GOP but more than politics, history will forever judge him for the costly but unnecessary war in Iraq. In these contexts, claiming credit for the death of America’s enemy number one is a very big deal!
Meanwhile, three of our prominent community leaders weighed in on the subject.
Rolly Cailles, past president of Ateneans, USA and Laguna Association of the Midwest and a former practicing lawyer in the Philippines, had this to say on the issue.
I don’t think that President Obama purposely took the glory out of President Bush’ work on the hunt for Bin Laden. There was so much that one can forget these past few days, after Bin Laden was killed. My take is that President Obama unintentionally forgot it.
President Obama invited President Bush to join him on Ground Zero. But President Bush rejected the invitation. I wonder why. That would have been the best time for President Obama to remember and give him the credit he deserves. Why he turned down the invitation, one can only wonder.
On another point. There is so much that bother many people, particularly about the way Bin Laden was killled. It is impractical or inconceivable that he will sleep every night with bombs on his body. With the firefight going on, had he wanted to fight, he would have grabbed the gun that was by the door. The fact is: Bin Laden had no weapon. He never fired a shot. Could he been a clear and present danger to any of the Seals at that time? If unarmed and not offering to put up any fight, why was he shot and killed? There was an option for the SEAL members to have arrested him, had they wanted to. Of course there was a risk. But that is precisely why SEAL members have been expertly trained. Anybody, holding a high caliber gun can easily shoot someone who is unarmed or, as an alternative, arrest him and make him surrender. Were the SEAL members under orders to kill Bin Laden under any circumstances?
I am an American. And as an American, I totally agree that Bin Laden is guilty! But criminals have rights too. There is a fundamental and basic rule in criminal law that says: one is presumed innocent until proven guilty, in a court of law. In Bin Laden’s case, what happened to that rule?
In addition, Pakistan is a nation with its own sovereignty. The fact that American soldiers entered Pakistan without the permission of the country’s government seems to be a violation of the sovereignty rule of Pakistan or any other country for that matter. I wonder how America would react and what it will say, if Pakistan entered the US territory, killed their enemy in US land, without America being informed and giving its consent in advance?
In the matter of sovereignty, is there one rule for America and another rule for any other country? Does the end justify the means? Or… can the King do no wrong?
Jesse Farraless, officer of Ateneans USA and self-proclaimed debonair, thinks Bush deserves more credit. His take:
The initiation, conceptualization, planning, training and resolve to capture Osama Bin Laden started after the 9/11 event during the presidency of George W. Bush. President Obama has to execute the process since he is the current commander in chief of the military. The credit should be equally if not more to be shared with George W. Bush too.
Princess Emraida Kiram of Milwaukee, Wisconsin and NaFFAA Midwest Region Chair shares her wisdom in the following statements:
I think Pres. Bush should not worry about his role or his legacy. Political expediency is on Pres. Obama’s side, and there are strong political motivations for what is happening now. However, when history is going to be written, credits will fall where they are due. Give the people the benefit of their own intelligence.
My take
The issue of credit for something as historically significant as bin Laden’s death cannot be taken lightly especially by presidents whose legacy will remain etched not only in the memory of his generation but also in the annals of history for the forthcoming generations. Bush and his party can fight for credit but does he deserve it? While he started his so-called war on terror and laid the groundwork for catching bin Laden, his plan lost steam when he decided to shift gears and went for Saddam Hussein instead. It was later found out that it was a war based on a very wrong premise and talking about this war is yet another topic for our conversation.
Meanwhile, bin Laden’s escape from Tora Bora in 2001 was a widely known military faux pas, the consequence of a bad call on Delta Force to hold off their hot pursuit of bin Laden sightings and let the local Afghan forces pick up the task. No less than some commanders in Delta Force spoke about how close they were to catching the terrorist and they wouldn’t even need more than 20 guys to finish the job. Let’s face it, Bush had his turn but turned up no dead bin Laden through eight years of his term. President Obama took measures and went for the kill when he thought the timing was right and got his guy. How awesome is that?
Counter terrorism adviser, John Brennan’s words summed it all up about President Obama’s decision to authorize the attack based on the intelligence provided to him. Brennan hailed the call as “one of the most gutsiest (sic) of any president in recent memory.”
For once in a long while, I agreed with Rudy Giuliani’s opinion to give all the credit to President Obama after all, had the operation failed, this guy would have taken all the blame.