Obama, Reconsidered

Well, yes, I was a little harsh on Sen. Barack Obama (D-Illinois), putative presidential candidate and the fave rave of the Democratic net-roots, but then again I believe his position — as expressed most recently in this “Letter to the President” — is rapidly evolving. Obama characterizes the prospect of a troop “surge” as “chiling,” and flatly declares “there is no military solution to this war.” Furthermore, he implies, at least, that a call for withdrawal is in the offing, the standard Democratic rhetoric about “phased redeployment” to the contrary notwitstanding:

We must not multiply the mistakes of yesterday, we must end them today. May this New year bring a turn in our policy away from the stubborn repetition of our mistakes, so we can begin to chart a conclusion to this painful chapter in our history and bring out troops home.

I would add: now! Aside from that, however, Obama’s is the best statement on the war from a presidential candidate to date. His letter is not only clear-cut in its opposition to Bush’s “surge,” it comes out squarely against the underlying principles of our crazed foreign policy. Obama is also heartfelt and obviously sincere, rather than cynically “positioning” himself poltically.

Go, Obama, go!