http://homelandsecuritynewswire.com/obama-coalition-cannot-militarily-force- gaddafi-leave
Obama: Coalition cannot militarily force Gaddafi to leave Published 24 March 2011 The Obama administration is continuing to send mixed messages about the direction, purpose, and effect of the U.S.-led missile strikes on Libya, with conflicting statements from the top about Col. Qaddafi's grip on power five days into the campaign; the coalition's air dominance has been achieved, but administration officials have not offered a clear picture as to what the no-fly zone is expected to yield; the president reiterated that the coalition does not "have military tools at our disposal in terms of accomplishing Qaddafi's leaving," though he has said it is U.S. policy that Qaddafi should go; Libyan Foreign Minister Musa Kusa spoke by telephone Sunday night with assistant secretary of State Jeffrey Feltman; no details were released http://homelandsecuritynewswire.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/standard/ libya-war-1.jpg Libyan tank explodes after air strike // Source: tribune.com.pk Ever since the War Powers Act was passed in 1973, members of Congress complained, when the president sent American soldiers to fight, that he was in violation of the act. Presidents of both parties said the act was a violation of the constitution, and ignored it (the act, not the constitution) when it suited their purpose. The issue of the constitutionality of the act remains unresolved. Donald Rumsfeld, defense secretary under former President George W. Bush, was right to point out the lack of clarity about the campaign at the higher echelons of the Obama administration, even as he was stretching it when he referred to this confusion as the reason why the president did not go to Congress to ask for an approval for the use of U.S. forces. Rumsfeld speculated that President Obama did not first come to Congress - before committing American forces to the Libya campaign - precisely because of confusion over the mission. "I suspect that one of the reasons that the administration didn't go to Congress is they didn't know what to ask for," Rumsfeld told Fox News on Tuesday. "They didn't know precisely with clarity and sufficient precision what it is they wanted the Congress to approve and the coalition clearly has not come to an agreement as to what their mission is." Rumsfeld said that if the allies can't, as their primary goal, define the mission, then "you are doomed." "The mission determines the coalition and the coalition not ought to determine the mission," Rumsfeld said. "I don't think they have agreed on a mission and the mission should have been decided before the coalition." The Obama administration is continuing to send mixed messages about the direction, purpose, and effect of the U.S.-led missile strikes on Libya, with conflicting statements from the top about Col. Qaddafi's grip on power five days into the campaign. The coalition's air dominance has been achieved, but administration officials have not offered a clear picture as to what the no-fly zone is expected to yield. The president, in the meantime, reiterated that the coalition does not "have military tools at our disposal in terms of accomplishing Qaddafi's leaving," though he has said it is U.S. policy that Qaddafi should go. Here are the latest developments, based on reports by the BBC <http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12837330> , Fox News <http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/03/23/obama-administration-sends-mixed -messages-libya-unrest-congress-grows/> , and the New York Times <http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/24/world/africa/24libya.html?_r=1&hp> . On the military front * Air Vice Marshal Greg Bagwell, the commander of British aircraft operating over Libya, said that Colonel Muammar Gaddafi's air force "no longer exists as a fighting force." He said the allies could now operate "with near impunity" over the skies of Libya. * He said they were now applying unrelenting pressure on the Libyan armed forces. "We have the Libyan ground forces under constant observation and we attack them whenever they threaten civilians or attack population centres," he said. * Gaddafi's tanks are shelling the hospital in the rebel-held western city of Misrata. Witnesses had earlier said the tanks encircling the city had pulled back from their positions under air assault from international forces. * Loyalist forces have surrounded two rebel-held cities in the west, Zintan and Misurata, and the strategic eastern city of Ajdabiya, and cut off telecommunications, electricity, and water. * On Wednesday there are also reports of fierce fighting between rebels and pro-Gaddafi forces in the strategic eastern town of Ajdabiya. Residents fleeing the town described shelling, gunfire, and houses on fire. * On Wednesday night there were reports of a huge explosion at a military base in the Tajura region 32 kilometers (20 miles) east of the Libyan capital Tripoli. * Rear Admiral Gerard Hueber, U.S. chief of staff for the Libya mission, who said: "We are putting pressure on Gaddafi's ground forces that are threatening cities." Asked if that meant air strikes, he replied: "Yes." * Allied aircraft had flown 175 sorties in the last 24 hours - 113 of them by U.S. aircraft. * Ships from NATO nations have started patrolling off the Libyan coast to enforce a UN arms embargo against Col. Gaddafi's regime. A spokesman for the Western military alliance, Canadian Brig. Gen. Pierre St Amand, said six vessels were taking part in the first day of patrols. They aim to intercept and board ships suspected of ferrying arms to the Libyan government. On the political front * U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has again urged Col. Gaddafi to step down and leave Libya. * Libyan Foreign Minister Musa Kusa spoke by telephone Sunday night with assistant secretary of State Jeffrey Feltman. No details were released. * UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has urged all sides in Libya to cease hostilities. "All those who violate international humanitarian and human rights law will be held fully accountable," his spokesman Martin Nesirky said. * NATO members have been holding talks about assuming responsibility for the no-fly zone over Libya, so far without agreement. * Turkey is an integral part of the naval blockade but expressed concern about the alliance taking over command of the no-fly zone from the United States. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ -------------------------- Want to discuss this topic? 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