Tag Archives: Afghanistan

Krauthammer – In Praise of the Rotation of Power

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RealClearPolitics – In Praise of the Rotation of Power.

Charles Krauthammer praises rotation of power:

“Barack Obama is now commander in chief. The lack of opposition (to our presence in Iraq and the war in Afghanistan) is not a matter of hypocrisy. It is a natural result of the rotation of power. When a party is in opposition, it opposes. That’s its job. But when it comes to power, it must govern. Easy rhetoric is over, the press of reality becomes irresistible. By necessity, it adopts some of the policies it had once denounced. And a new national consensus is born.”

Krauthammer further explains:

“The rotation of power is the finest political instrument ever invented for the consolidation of what were once radical and deeply divisive policies. The classic example is the New Deal. Republicans railed against it for 20 years. Then Dwight Eisenhower came to power, wisely left it intact, and no serious leader since has called for its repeal.

Similarly, Bill Clinton consolidated Reaganism, just as Tony Blair consolidated Thatcherism. In both cases, center-left moderates brought their party to accept the major premises of the highly successful conservative reforms that preceded them.

A similar consolidation has happened with many of the Bush anti-terror policies. In opposition, the Democrats decried warrantless wiretaps, rendition, and detention without trial. But now that they are charged with protecting us from the bad guys, they’ve come to view these as indispensable national security measures.”


Bush Never Leaves the White House

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George W. Bush is an abiding presence in the White House’s day-to-day.  Obama runs though the hall shouting, “Where’s my whipping boy?” When Obama becomes President for real, maybe he won’t need Bush anymore.  Here’s Charles Krauthammer’s astute observations:

This compulsion to attack his predecessor is as stale as it is unseemly. Obama was elected a year ago. He became commander-in-chief two months later. He then solemnly announced his own “comprehensive new strategy” for Afghanistan seven months ago. And it was not an off-the-cuff decision. “My administration has heard from our military commanders, as well as our diplomats,” the president assured us. “We’ve consulted with the Afghan and Pakistani governments, with our partners and our NATO allies, and with other donors and international organizations” and “with members of Congress. “…..

For Krauthammer’s succinct analysis of the choices facing Obama go here.