So hard up …for + coverage

The Obama Administration so hard up for positive media coverage they sends out the Public Servant Obama on nationwide TV to an ego rubbing news conference. I don’t know about you but I expect our Homeland Security to do their job and prevent this from happening anything less would be unacceptable.
Sorry Obama you did nothing, your administration did nothing and the Homeland Security did their job. I see this as political media blast for attention just before the elections. News worth yes and should have been covered in the media yes but a Public Servant display ……. Joke…

Oh! When this was happening I was logging over 6100 air miles at the time…. Maybe I should have been given the Press Conference …..

…..Homeland did their job …..Thank you very much …..Obama did jack shit as always but will take the credit …..

I disagree, and will say if you think the President is not involved in coordinating or overseeing the response to an event, you have no idea how the national security system works.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/10/29/AR2010102904395.html?wpisrc=nl_headline

Yes, DHS did their job, but so the DNI, NSA, National Security Adviser and rest of the DoD and intelligence community.

Also, this is the latest attempt by AQ in Yemen and AQIM, which the administration has been stepping up pressure covertly with drone strikes and special ops.
This goes way beyond the standard press conference and is apparently, the latest in a string of attempts by AQ in Yemen.

Remember this name: Anwar al-Aulaqi
He is the head of AQ in Yemen and is an American.

Obama...making politcal hay? Surely you jest. He wouldn't do that :rolleyes:

In agreeing with ptown, I'm glad it was diverted...and they did their jobs. I'd much rather read about how they prevented it than have congresional hearings about what went wrong and why so many innocents were murdered. I will agree with Belly on one point...his Public Servant has to do something to pivot people's attention away from the economic malaise, the unacceptable unemployment situation, and his ineptness on keeping Arizona safe for...Americans. His major problem is that he isn't on the ballot...but his agenda is. Stopping terrorists won't save people like Kilroy, Reid, and Grayson from the political noose on Tuesday. Au revoir.

I don't begrudge the Anointed One for taking some credit in this thwarting of the latest al-Qaeda cluster f***......

I'm just glad the intelligence authorities managed to snuff this out. I hope they also manage to flush out al-Aulaqi. He might have U.S. citizenship but he's no American.

Also, Saudi Arabia gave us some great intelligence on the operation.

BTW, the claims that Obama was just using it for PR, would you say the same for President Bush in the thwarted attempts during his Presidency? Many liberals made that connection as well during the Bush years.

I disagree with that POV and state that the President is deeply involved and it is not a PR move.

ptown_trojans_1;538331 wrote:Also, Saudi Arabia gave us some great intelligence on the operation.

BTW, the claims that Obama was just using it for PR, would you say the same for President Bush in the thwarted attempts during his Presidency? Many liberals made that connection as well during the Bush years.

I disagree with that POV and state that the President is deeply involved and it is not a PR move.

I tend to agree. It's largely timing and coincidence.

believer;538335 wrote:I tend to agree. It's largely timing and coincidence.

haha!

ptown_trojans_1;538331 wrote:Also, Saudi Arabia gave us some great intelligence on the operation.

BTW, the claims that Obama was just using it for PR, would you say the same for President Bush in the thwarted attempts during his Presidency? Many liberals made that connection as well during the Bush years.

I disagree with that POV and state that the President is deeply involved and it is not a PR move.

The vast majority of the "stops" during Dubya's reign were barely publicized...if at all...at least at the time they occurred.

They were definitely publicized. Both administrations have been keen to capitalize when they've successfully stopped a planned attack or captured suspects. And I don't begrudge either of them for that.

fish82;538399 wrote:The vast majority of the "stops" during Dubya's reign were barely publicized...if at all...at least at the time they occurred.

Ehh, disagree. The LA plot, the London Airline plot and the NY subway plots were highly publicized. So, both administrations handle terror events rather similarly.

Of note, in the NY this morning there some arrests in Yemen and apparently the bombs were pretty sophisticated. It is interesting that the groups are continuing to exploit airplanes and air freights. Again, Yemen has been the main source of attacks over the past year, going back to the Ft. Hood shootings. The U.S. has also used drones and SPECOPS, but interesting last night, the President of Yemen denied any foreign involvement. That is interesting as it appears the U.S. footprint will still be light and largely in the shadows. But, it appears that policy is not working, so what does the U.S. do?
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/31/world/31terror.html?_r=1&nl=&emc=a1&pagewanted=all

This also brings up the debate on how much should cargo be screened before it enters the U.S. DHS argues that it would be way too expensive and nearly impossible given the amount of material that comes in the country.

Finally, mad props to our and the UK and Saudis intelligence agencies. Shows the Saudis are really good strategic partners and the importance of good, fast, accurate intelligence.

ptown_trojans_1;539592 wrote:Shows the Saudis are really good strategic partners and the importance of good, fast, accurate intelligence.

This time perhaps. I wonder where they were on September 11, 2001?

believer;539614 wrote:This time perhaps. I wonder where they were on September 11, 2001?

Considering the terrorists trained and planned in Afghanistan and in Europe, I don't think they had any idea.
Yemen, by contrast, is directly to the south, so they have the ability to have intel agents in the country.

ptown_trojans_1;539628 wrote:Considering the terrorists trained and planned in Afghanistan and in Europe, I don't think they had any idea.

Osama bin Laden

Wasn't he in Afghanistan at the time?

I Wear Pants;539699 wrote:Wasn't he in Afghanistan at the time?

Yes he was...and he is also a member of a very prominent Saudi family...just sayin'.....

believer;539705 wrote:Yes he was...and he is also a member of a very prominent Saudi family...just sayin'.....

His family has disowned him since 1994 and he was stripped of his Saudi citzenship in the mid 1990's.

believer;539705 wrote:Yes he was...and he is also a member of a very prominent Saudi family...just sayin'.....

But, I doubt Saudi Arabia had operatives in Afghanistan at the time with on the ground information to say that there was a plot. I also doubt OBL was communicating with anyone in Saudi at the time, therefore, there were no opportunities for them to intercept information.

This time, however, Yemen is right next door and a serious threat to the Saudi state, hence they have a vested interest in working with the U.S. Also, the Saudis have been very aggressive with military strikes near the Yemeni border and taking out suspected al Qaeda members.

buck;539720 wrote:His family has disowned him since 1994 and he was stripped of his Saudi citzenship in the mid 1990's.

Even rotten fruit falls very close to the tree.

That's not true at all.

His family didn't like him and his country didn't like him well before we didn't like him.

Saudi Arabia had nothing to do with 9/11.

I Wear Pants;540855 wrote:That's not true at all.

His family didn't like him and his country didn't like him well before we didn't like him.

Saudi Arabia had nothing to do with 9/11.

Of course they didn't. It was Saddam Hussein and his network of terrorists in Iraq that were responsible. Isn't that part of the reason we invaded Iraq?

Oh yeah, forgot about that.

stlouiedipalma;541065 wrote:Of course they didn't. It was Saddam Hussein and his network of terrorists in Iraq that were responsible. Isn't that part of the reason we invaded Iraq?

touche'