Six myths about President Obama's greatest foreign-policy success.

[Valin]

Foreign Policy:

 

MARK BOWDEN

OCTOBER 15, 2012

 

"The decision to launch the raid was a close call."

 

Not really. The idea that U.S. President Barack Obama bucked the counsel of his key advisors in deciding to order the Navy SEAL assault on Osama bin Laden's compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan, apparently arose from reports of the spirited discussions that the president entertained in the weeks before the raid. Some of the confusion can be traced back to the administration itself. Vice President Biden's National Security Advisor Tony Blinken was quoted in a CNN report saying, "First, we [didn't] know for sure bin Laden is there; the evidence [was] circumstantial. Second, most of his senior advisors recommended a different course of action."

 

(Snip)

 

"Obama called off the raid several times."

 

Completely false. This rumor has no basis in fact, but is reported in Richard Mintner's broadside against Obama published last summer, Leading From Behind. It is a claim that apparently appeals to those who view the president as a closet pacifist, but contradicts every account by the principals involved in planning the operation -- many of whom I have interviewed personally. It also contradicts the timeline for mission preparation.

 

(Snip)

 

"Obama's determination to bulk up the operation saved the day."

 

Hardly. This misconception arose from poorly briefed White House staffers who were eager to inflate their boss's role in the raid. They assumed that the additional chopper -- one of two Chinooks that flew into Pakistan with back-up fuel and a rescue team when one of the stealth Blackhawks crashed -- was present only because the president had ordered McRaven to be prepared to fight his way out of the country if challenged by Pakistani forces.

 

(Snip)

 

The Finish: The Killing of Osama Bin Laden

Mark Bowden

 

 

Greta Van Susteren interviews Mark Bowden

 

2nd of many many many books to come out about this raid.