I'm a little surprised no one has taken the time to note the following news from the White House:
Later in the day, Obama is expected to meet with his economic team and top brass from the Pentagon.
He plans to tell the top U.S. officers that he wants them to plan to have combat forces out of Iraq in 16 months, as he promised during his election campaign, an adviser said.
"It's something he still believes is a responsible timetable," White House adviser David Axelrod told CNN. "But they'll discuss it. Everyone agrees that we need to be on a pace to withdraw our troops, and how that will be implemented I'm sure will be something he'll discuss."
That's pretty damned important, isn't it? Planning to get all combat troops out in 16 months, as promised?
I know there's been a lot of cynicism about the transition period, but here's Obama stepping up to the plate on day one and preparing to hit one of his key promises out of the park.
Bravo, President Obama!
And here's another couple of things to chew on.
- Top brass at the Pentagon agrees that we need a timetable for withdrawal now. This is the same top brass that served under Bush. Why were we having a debate about timetables? Please remind me, mainstream media.
- Suspending the Gitmo trials was a blow...to those who hoped to be martyred there. Seems obvious, eh? But yet, again, mainstream media, why was there no widespread acknowledgment that the processes at Gitmo were actually benefiting those extremists we were ostensibly seeking to prosecute?