It would appear that our 44th president has more than a modicum of difficulty making the tough decisions. No, not on those highly controversial domestic issues that are not supported by a majority of Americans; he fully intends to ignore their protests and criticisms and force his plan over their objections. It is those pesky foreign policy and national security issues that put him in an uncontrolled tailspin. 

The most pressing of these two issues at the moment is national security. Chief among the most urgent is Afghanistan and Iran. Leading experts in the military as well as military strategists have offered advice, opinions and expertise as to how best to proceed in both of these instances but the president has given no indication that it is being received. 

With regard to Afghanistan, should we proceed in any direction under the current politically correct Rules of Engagement, the prognosis for success is dire indeed. It is precisely this dithering around the potential consequences for political fallout on one hand and insisting on engaging a ruthless enemy using the Marquis of Queensbury rules on the other that has put our military in a most dangerous position. 

The one constant in the equation is that should we cede that nation back to the Taliban, and by proxy al-Qaeda, we will have slammed the door to stability in the Middle East squarely in our faces, perhaps indefinitely. The question may be hard and the answer even more difficult but it is a question that requires an answer in the immediate. To dither, dally, study, and ponder endlessly is to declare ignorance of the substance of the question. What is required in this critical situation is a decision. 

Even more pressing is Iran. Here the president has drawn so many lines in the sand that he has run out of desert in which to make his mark. At the G-8 Summit in July, President Obama gave Iran a September deadline to come into compliance with the international communities’ demands of its nuclear program or face “the possibility” of harsh sanctions. September came and went; Obama dithered and drew yet another line moving Iran’s compliance deadline to December, saying this time he really means it.

Every line, every ultimatum, every threat of “the possibility” of sanctions against Iran has been met by Iran giving our president the raspberry. Each time our demands for compliance are met with defiance, Obama’s response is to tone down his rhetoric. We wouldn’t want to do anything that would threaten diplomacy, now, would we? So, as we apply reason and understanding, Iran moves daily closer to their goal of becoming the next nuclear power in the Middle East.

If these issues alone were not pressing enough, Barack Obama has declared that he wants to “reset” relations with Russia. In an unprecedented act of appeasement, he conceded to Russia’s demands to halt plans to build a missile defense system in both Poland and Czechoslovakia. This unilateral act of conciliation has been met with anger and condemnation by both countries. In a single move, Obama has alienated two of our best allies, demonstrated clear weakness in the eyes of our enemies and emboldened a resurgent Russia in its pursuits of returning to a dominant force over the former Soviet satellite nations.  

On foreign policy matters, the president has fared no better. Among his first actions was to insult the Brits when he insisted that a bust of Winston Churchill, originally given to George W Bush, be sent back to England instead of finding another prominent place in the White House to display it. He then stomped on the toes of tradition and decorum both with England’s, Prime Minister, Gordon Brown and the now infamous gift of non-functional DVDs not to mention ignoring protocol while visiting the Queen of England. 

Additionally, he has snubbed France’s President, Nicolas Sarkozy and again snubbed Gordon Brown by refusing to meet personally with him at the G-20 Summit in Pennsylvania. Moreover, he has succeeded in engendering the ire of Germany’s Chancellor, Angela Merkel. 

Barack Obama has indeed made his debut in the World’s Stage. All eyes were on the novice president to get a measure of his mettle. The curtain has been pulled back, the band has stopped playing and it is clear for all to see, the president cannot stand-alone. The man who is the puppet of politics and an idealistic agenda is a motionless figure, mired in decisions he fears to make, as he dithers, hoping for a steady hand on the strings that bind his ability to act.