The Bushification of Obama

Israeli Media highlighted what it called the first public signs of practical preparations for a possible US military operation against Iran.

The conclusion is based on an executive order signed by US Central Command chief Gen. David Petraeus and front-paged by NY Times.

The secret Joint Unconventional Warfare Task Force Execute Order signed on September 30, 2009 set the stage for an increase in covert operations to counter militants and other threats across the Middle East.

Accordingly, Special Operations forces were authorized to deploy to both allied and hostile nations in the Mideast, Central Asia and the Horn of Africa to conduct surveillance missions and partner with local forces.

The seven-page order, interestingly, cites Iran as one of the many theaters these operations are taking place on, in order to "prepare the environment" for future attacks, anonymous sources told the paper.

This directive, must have had the approval of the President. However it was signed amidst a reported confrontation between President Obama on one side and Bob Gates, Mike Mullen, David Petraeus, and Stanley McChrystal on the other, as Jonathan Alter reported for Newsweek Web.

Mullen dug himself in especially deep at his reconfirmation hearings for chairman of the Joint Chiefs when he made an aggressive case for a long-term commitment in Afghanistan. White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel was enraged at Mullen’s public testimony and let the Pentagon know it. When Petraeus gave an interview to Washington Post columnist Michael Gerson on Sept.4 calling for a “fully resourced, comprehensive counterinsurgency campaign,” the chief of staff was even angrier.

General Petraeus, has a track record of relying on special forces whose work was the backbone of the US troop surge success in Iraq in 2007 as well as in eliminating Al-Qaeda top leaders.

He seems to have succeeded in tilting the administration's policies more to the right.

In his speech thanking the right wing AEI think tank in Washington for giving him the Irving Kristol Award, three weeks ago, Petraeus paid special tribute to the role Fred and Kim Kagan had in the Iraq surge.

Indeed, I’m particularly pleased to have this opportunity because it gives me a chance to express my respect for AEI, an organization whose work I know not just by reputation–but also through first-hand experience.

One recent AEI effort, of course, stands out in particular. In the fall of 2006, AEI scholars helped develop the concept for what came to be known as “the surge.” Fred and Kim Kagan and their team, which included retired General Jack Keane, prepared a report that made the case for additional troops in Iraq. As all here know, it became one of those rare think tank products that had a truly strategic impact.

For beginners, Irving Kristol is celebrated as the father of Neoconservatism, hence, it is worth noting how Petraeus ended his AEI speech.

Well, my goal tonight was two-fold: first, to explain the changes we made in our Army in 2006; and, second, to give a speech that I’d like to think Irving Kristol might have enjoyed.

The classified order, represents a significant escalation of the covert military activities ordered by former president George W Bush at the height of the War on Terror, wrote UK's Telegraph:

Gen Petraeus's directive, which would have had the blessings of the White House, suggests Barack Obama has deviated little in the military handling of the war on terror from his predecessor, George W Bush.