Defense

Greg Sargent points out an interesting Gallup poll yesterday in which Obama gets higher marks (for the most part) on foreign policy and national security than on domestic issues.



Sargent calls this a "reverse Nixon-to-China sybdrome." (The conventional wisdom is that it's easier for hawks to make "dovish" concessions. But Obama is a dove getting high marks for somewhat "dovish" positions, Sargent argues.)

Indeed, it doesn't look as though Obama's position on Guantanamo Bay and openness to talks with Iran is hurting him.

But it's important to note that Obama has shifted adopted (or just slightly modified) some of Bush's position since taking office, including the "state secrets privilege," military commissions, habeas corpus, and others. (See here for more on the similarity between Bush and Obama on terrorism issues.)

So I wouldn't conclude that Obama's high approval numbers on terror represent a victory for Bush's main critics.

The AP reports that the Pentagon "has no plans" to repeal the Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy that prevents gays and lesbians from serving openly in the military:

"I do not believe there are any plans under way in this building for some expected, but not articulated, anticipation that don't ask-don't tell will be repealed," Morrell told reporters at the Pentagon.

[snip]

Morrell said Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Joint Chiefs Chairman Adm. Mike Mullen both have discussed the issue with Obama.

"They're aware of where the president wants to go on this issue, but I don't think that there is any sense of any immediate developments in the offing on efforts to repeal don't ask-don't tell," Morrell said.

But I wouldn't go as far as Jillian Bandes at Townhall, who cites this as evidence that "there will be no revoking of the 'don't ask don't tell' policy in the U.S. military."

Marc Ambinder has more on the Obama administration's cautious policy in repealing the policy, a goal he insists they're committed to:

You can see the outline of the strategy in the administration's decision to let stand an appeals court ruling requiring the military to explain why being gay is, in itself, a reason to have fired a highly regarded lesbian Air Force major. The effect of not appealing the ruling will put the burden on the government to explain to skeptical judges why being gay is inherently incompatible with military service, something the administration (and many in the military) believe is very hard to prove, let alone justify. The hope here is that by allowing the military to make its best case--and then seeing that case be torn apart by the courts, a critical mass of opposition to Don't Ask, Don't Tell, will build.

This strikes me as exactly the opposite technique Bill Clinton used to (clumsily) address the issue early in his term. Rather than picking a fight with the military and facing the backlash--both within the Pentagon and the general public--the Obama administration is putting the ball in the military's court.

President Obama tried to tamp down expectations for the fervent supporters of Lockheed Martin

The Hill has obtained text of the agreement struck by U.S. and Iraqi Cabinet officials that requires all U.S. forces to leave Iraq by 2011.

The Cabinet of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki approved the deal Sunday. The pact, officially known as a Status of Forces Agreement, still needs approval from the Iraqi Parliament. The Bush administration had initially opposed a definite timetable for a troop withdrawal when negotiations over the deal began more than a year ago.

Here's the portion of the agreement that sets the withdrawal.

Article 24
Withdrawal of the United States Forces from Iraq

Recognizing the performance and increasing capacity of the Iraqi Security Forces, the assumption of full security responsibility by those Forces, and based upon the strong relationship between the Parties, an agreement on the following has been reached:

1. All the United States Forces shall withdraw from all Iraqi territory no later than December 31, 2011.

2. All United States combat forces shall withdraw from Iraqi cities, villages, and localities no later than the time at which Iraqi Security Forces assume full responsibility for security in an Iraqi province, provided that such withdrawal is completed no later than June 30, 2009.

3. United States combat forces withdrawn pursuant to paragraph 2 above shall be stationed in the agreed facilities and areas outside cities, villages, and localities to be designated by the JMOCC before the date established in paragraph 2 above.

4. The United States recognizes the sovereign right of the Government of Iraq to request the departure of the United States Forces from Iraq at any time. The Government of Iraq recognizes the sovereign right of the United States to withdraw the United States Forces from Iraq at any time.

5. The Parties agree to establish mechanisms and arrangements to reduce the number of the United States Forces during the periods of time that have been determined, and they shall agree on the locations where the United States Forces will be present.

The full text can be read after the jump.
Read more...

Gen. David Petraeus said he's reluctant to ever declare victory in Iraq in an interview with the BBC.

"This is not the sort of struggle where you take a hill, plant the flag and go home to a victory parade... it's not war with a simple slogan," Petraeus said.

Petraeus, the top U.S. commander in Iraq, said that security gains made since the U.S. military surge aren't irreversable and that the United States still faced a "long struggle." But he added that the withdrawal of U.S. troops from most Iraqi cities by the middle of 2009 was "doable" since Iraqis are taking more responsibility for the security of their country.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates on Wednesday recommended that Lieutenant General Craig McKinley be nominated as the next chief of the National Guard Bureau.

McKinley is now the head of the Air National Guard. If he becomes the National Guard Bureau chief he will also become the first four-star general to lead the Guard based on the recommendations of the National Guard Commission.

McKinley will succeed Lieutenant General Steven Blum, who is slated to become the first ever National Guard deputy to Northern Command. Blum has overseen the Guard during both the Afghanistan and Iraq wars. During his tenure the Guard has significantly grown not only in numbers but also in congressional and national attention.

-Roxana Tiron

Sen. Richard Shelby (R-Ala.) said that Defense Secretary Robert Gates will announce today the reopening of competition for a $40 billion tanker contract.

The contract had been won by a group that was part of Europe-based Airbus. But a General Accountability Office report found credence in complaints made by Airbus's competitor, Boeing, and the U.S.-based company's supporters in Congress.

Read the full story at TheHill.com.

Shelby, whose state will help build the tanker if Airbus wins the contract, urged a quick resolution to the bid process in a statement, which is posted below.

"This is the best of all options. It is important to remember that out of Boeing's 111 complaints, the [General Accountability Office (GAO)] concurred with a mere seven. The plan the Department of Defense has come up with is an appropriate solution to remedy the minor procedural flaws the GAO found in the initial award. It is vitally important that members of Congress support this expeditious path forward that not only satisfies the recommendations offered by GAO, but also ensures that the Air Force's urgent and compelling need to field a tanker is met as quickly as possible."

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Tuesday that the United States needs to do more than merely talk to Iran.

In a speech before the American Israel Public Affairs Committee's conference in Washington, Rice said that the United States is conducting diplomacy with the Islamic state, but she dismissed a debate over whether U.S. leaders should "talk" to the country.

"We would be willing to meet with them, but not while they continue to inch closer to a nuclear weapon, under the cover of talk," Rice said, speaking for the Bush administration. "So the real question is not, 'Why won't the Bush administration talk to Tehran?' The real question is, 'Why won't Tehran talk to us?'"

A greater willingness to meet with leaders who have been antagonists of the United States has been central to Barack Obama's foreign policy. Obama's proposal has prompted criticism from Republicans and their presidential nominee, John McCain, who suggested today that Obama is offering something that has been tried and hasn't worked.

Rice also added that the United States has done more than just talk with Iran. It has sanctioned Iranian military forces and its banks and has sent U.S. ships to the region to deter attacks by Iran on other countries, Rice noted.

"Diplomacy is not a synonym for talking," she said. "True diplomacy means structuring a set of incentives and disincentives to produce change in behavior."

Along with Iraq war veterans and concerned citizens, Iraq Campaign 2008 says it will unfurl a 50-foot replica "Mission Accomplished" banner at the White House tomorrow, marking the five-year anniversary of President Bush's now-infamous speech.

The unfurling is slated to occur at 10:30 a.m. on Pennsylvania Ave.

On May 1, 2003, President Bush declared an end to major U.S. combat operations in Iraq (see the speech here) aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln, anchored off the coast of San Diego. The ship bore a large banner that read "Mission Accomplished." CNN reported that, in October 2003, reporters pressed the White House on the banner, as U.S. casualties in Iraq had risen; the White House responded that the banner had been placed by the Navy.

The Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (SLDN) tomorrow will launch a tour through California, Nevada, and Colorado in opposition of the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy for gay and lesbian servicemembers. The tour will start in San Diego, then will proceed to Las Vegas, Denver, and Palm Springs.

""Don