Sure, everyone knows that this election season’s foil is the economy, stupid. Much like 2008, no issue will dominate voters’ minds more than the relative emptiness of their pocketbooks. But that quiet scraping you hear in the distance, my friends, is the sound of national security trying to claw its way into this year’s election. Thanks to Bob Woodward’s new book, “Obama’s Wars”, it just might get a chip in the game.
Woodward’s book, previewed by articles today in the Washington Post (Woodward’s employer) and New York Times, apparently focuses on the administration’s decision-making process throughout the three-month Afghanistan strategy review that took place in late 2009. The full volume isn’t due out until next week, but suffice it to say that the papers have gravitated to the more salacious details:
— ZING! Petraeus thinks Alexrod’s a spin doctor!
— BAM! Obama doesn’t listen to his generals!
— DOINK! Karzai is manic depressive and pops pills!
… or something.
With an election just weeks away, this is chum in shark-infested conservative waters.
But POW! After digging past the juicy headlines, it’s evident that there’s a deeper message here, too: The progressive base, feeling like an abandoned date on prom-night over Obama’s Afghanistan decision and hardly motivated to support Democrats this fall, might just be heartened to learn of the president’s refusal to write the generals a blank check.
And if that means jazzing up more progressive election volunteers until election day, it might explain why the White House would grant Woodward such extensive access in the first place. I mean, they didn’t let him sit down with the president to make them look bad.
