Reading between Obama's lines

One of my all-time heroes is Br’er Rabbit, of please-don‘t-throw-me-into-the-briar-patch fame.

Following Obama’s disappointing announcement that America will be pulling out of Afghanistan in bloody slow motion, it hit me that he may be playing an angle that ol’ Br’er would surely approve of.

It goes like this: Obama now accepts that the nation-building effort is getting nowhere fast. But if he admits that publicly his enemies will pounce on it and scream incessantly that such an admission would mean Americans died for nothing. Nobody needs that kind of noise when they’re trying to get reelected.

So, how do you get out of there sooner than 2014 and still get reelected?

Perhaps the answer is to admit nothing and thoroughly piss off the antiwar crowd. Then stand back and let angry Democrats -- who've suddenly found their courage -- and just enough opportunistic, Obama-bashing Republicans in Congress swell up and force the president to move faster.

That strategy would provide cover and spread the blame for whatever perceived failures ensue. Instead of the Obama administration cutting and running, it would be Congress stepping in to do the right thing.

Please don’t make me bring the troops home in a year!

Cynical?

Yes.

Clever?

Maybe.

Oh, please don’t make me bring all the troops home in less than a year!

-- Art and words by F.T. Rea