how did I miss this?? PNAC co-founder influences Obama's foreign policy??

[grasswire]

Lord Almighty.

Robert Kagan, whose book about the loss of American exceptionalism is apparently being touted by Obama, is a co-founder of the PNAC, a close partner of Wm. Kristol, a foreign policy advisor for John McCain and Mitt Romney.....

This makes me sick.

Thank you, Bill Moyers, for calling this to our attention tonight.

[Sherman A1]

1. Was that the show with

Andrew Bacevich? A truly great program.

[grasswire]

9. yes

and I am going to have to watch it again to get all the meat.

It's kind of a sad realization that I trust Bill Moyers more than I trust my president.

[brooklynite]

2. How is he influencing it?

Withdrawing troops from Iraq and Afgahnistan?

Not bombing Iran?

Playing a minimal role in supporting democracy in Libya and then stepping away?

[Proud Liberal Dem]

3. +1

[Dokkie]

4. Majority of the troops

coming out of Iraq are still in the vicinity of Iran, most are in Kuwait and other ME military bases. And for a war on Iran? just wait for our sanctions and the toppling of their only middle east ally in Syria to work their way into softening Iran and only then will be strike.

Everything is working as planned, lets just hope Russia and China doesn't let it happen

[brooklynite]

5. So you're saying...

either "President Obama agrees with PNAC's interventionist neoconservative philosophy", or "President Obama is too dumb to know when he's being given bad foreign policy advice". Which is it?

[Dokkie]

6. Its too early to tell

which side he is going with. PNAC, anti PNAC and his version of PNAC

[grasswire]

8. it could be the latter

but I wouldn't use the word "dumb". I don't know why he picks bad advice from people with track records exposing policy advocacy not in the best interest of the American people and good governance. But sometimes he does.

[Liberal_Stalwart71]

7. Thank you! +1! I'll be afraid when we start invading unarmed nations

who haven't done anything to us.

[Proud Liberal Dem]

10. If PNAC supposedly has Obama's ears

then he must be a major disappointment to them. 2+ years in and we're not in Iraq anymore, we have a timetable for withdrawal from Afghanistan, Obama is reducing the "defense" budget, and hasn't launched (or given approval for Israel to launch) an attack on Iran despite considerable right-wing and Israeli pressure.

[Ikonoklast]

11. Kagan advises, Obama then does the exact opposite.

Winning!

[Enrique]

13. they heartily approve of Libya

[Proud Liberal Dem]

14. Most right-wingers were screeching against it.

At any rate, our role there was limited- certainly was not an Iraq-style invasion/occupation.

[Enrique]

15. not the neocons

the right-wingers who care mostly about attacking whatever Obama does for partisan reasons, of course they were screeching about it.

But the neocons who care mostly about their neocon ideology, they were applauding Obama.

[Proud Liberal Dem]

16. So

if they happen to agree with President Obama on an issue or two, that means that they control him or that he's being unduly influenced by them? Frankly, as long as he's not actively trying to get us into a war with Iran or another country (and I mean, a big huge massive war a la Iraq or Afghanistan), I'm not really too worried. He didn't run as a pacifist and, like Clinton, I expected him to use the military once in a while when it was requested or otherwise deemed useful/important. So far, he has been pretty smart/conscious about his use of the military, which is more than I can say about the last (mis-)administration.

[Enrique]

12. he referenced the book in his State of the Union address

I agree, this development has been under-discussed.

[muriel_volestrangler]

17. And his reference was that the USA is not in decline; and it was not about exceptionalism

Here's the article in The New Republic: http://www.tnr.com/print/article/politics/magazine/99521/america-world-power-declinism

And the reference in the speech was:

"The renewal of American leadership can be felt across the globe," Obama said in his State of the Union address Tuesday evening. "From the coalitions we've built to secure nuclear materials, to the missions we've led against hunger and disease; from the blows we've dealt to our enemies, to the enduring power of our moral example, America is back."

"Anyone who tells you otherwise, anyone who tells you that America is in decline or that our influence has waned, doesn't know what they're talking about," Obama said.

http://thecable.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2012/01/26/obama_embraces_romney_advisor_s_theory_on_the_myth_of_american_decline

Since there's no mention there about 'exceptionalism', or of Kagan influencing foreign policy, despite what the OP claims, here's an alternative spin: "Obama disagrees with Romney and Thomas Friedman that the USA is in decline".