On Obama's Policy Failure, Pt. II

When the news broke that both the Cairo embassy and the Benghazi consulate were assaulted and people killed in the latter, it was disheartening to say the least.  How could something this awful happen?  Unfortunately, there was a terrible truth to be revealed.

On the anniversary of 9/11, the Obama administration had done nothing to improve security at these sites.

For years, radical Islamists have drummed up those sympathetic to their cause for demonstrations on that day, celebrating the successful murder of 3,000 people.  The fact that any embassy did not have additional guards posted, whether from the host country or detachments of marines, is beyond dangerous.  It is disgraceful.  And this disgrace killed four good men in Libya.

The administration attempts to hide behind excuses, claiming that the Benghazi consulate was too small to have a larger security detail.  In addition to being a far too literalistic interpretation of regulations, our ambassador was in that building that day.  Even if the compound itself did not warrant additional security, would not Ambassador Steven's himself at least deserved a group of well-armed marines to protect him and deter attacks on his person?

They also claim they had no "actionable intelligence" prior to the assault.  Another day, another excuse.  Again, I point to the date and the lack of marines.  I also argue that the president might have been more inclined to increase security if he actually attended national security briefings with intelligence experts telling him what they know and what they feel.  A non-expert "reading the briefing himself" instills absolutely no confidence in me that he is any more informed when he finishes those briefings.

Finally, there's the creator of the anti-Islam film, which is only a trailer that has existed for two months.  When fanatics and savages burn our embassies and kill our diplomats, allegedly over a film, the president failed to do the one thing he should have done.  Assuming the film is the root cause of all the protests, which I do not believe for a second, no one in this administration actually defended the filmmaker's right to make stupid movies.

Instead, they condemned him.  Our government condemned him for exercising his right to free speech   They investigated him.  They leaned (and continue to lean) on YouTube to take the video down which, to its credit, it has not.  They've taken him into custody (apparently on unrelated charges), in a manner more appropriate to a newly-discovered Nazi war criminal, surrounded by police (police who might have been better off surrounding the ambassador.  Better someone than no one at all).  Unrelated or not, however, this is clearly for making a film.

This is scary.  The government is using its power to suppress speech it doesn't like.

Now, by no means do I condone making fun of people's religion.  However, this is no excuse to condemn legitimate free speech behavior or justify violent, murderous rioters.  I don't recall violent riots when an "artist" submerged a crucifx in urine.  I'm pretty sure it's not okay to defame Christ or His sacrifice, just as it is not okay to defame Muhammad, but Christians do not kill people over it.  So how can you now justify riots over something like this?  All we do by punishing the man who made this film is tell the radicals that we will enforce their laws and beliefs when they riot a little.  That's all it will take.

I say it again: this administration's response to murder and assaults all over the world is disgraceful.  If President Obama can not be relied upon to protect our diplomats and our freedoms, he does not deserve his office.