The Obama Doctrine

With Qaddafi's death earlier today comes further vindication of the Obama Doctrine. That is not to say the President is solely responsible for his death; in fact, it is quite the contrary, as Qaddafi died at the hands of the Libyan people. And that is the point.

Obama's foreign policy team has strategically decided when to intervene, when to sit on the sidelines, and when to pull the strings behind the scenes. The administration has shifted away from nation building and focused much more on counter-terrorism and covert operations than the previous administration. In the words of Foreign Policy's David Rothkopf, "The Obama Doctrine prioritizes the use of intelligence, unmanned aircraft, special forces, and the leverage of teaming with others to achieve very narrowly defined but critical goals." Such a strategy has resulted in the killing of both Osama bin Laden and Anwar al-Awlaki.

By focusing on such narrowly defined goals, Obama is essentially a 21st century version of George H.W. Bush - but with one crucial difference: size of force. Bush 41 adhered to The Powell Doctrine which called for an "overwhelming and disproportionate" force to reach narrow goals. Obama, on the other hand, has utilized advancements in intelligence over the past 20 years to advocate for a slimmer, more targeted use of force. And given his successes, it is impossible to deny the wisdom of many aspects of this strategy. Say what you may of Obama's domestic shortcomings, but the President's foreign policy strategy deserves to be looked at as a template to build on for administrations to come.