Why Obama Can't Go Easy on Iran

Since taking office, I and several of those who hold views on the American center-right have been pleasantly surprised by aspects of President Barack Obama’s policies toward national security and foreign policy. While he has proven surprisingly green in some areas — the botched diplomacy, the bowing, the poor choices in gifts — as a general rule, President Obama has followed a path on security and international relations that is much better, and has much more in common with his predecessor, than many expected. While he and Dick Cheney disagree on much, his administration has quietly continued defense in the courts of several key policies adopted by George W. Bush, indicating that he has perhaps reconsidered some of his rasher statements during the Democratic primaries last year. Reading the daily intelligence briefings has a way of changing one’s perception of the world, and it’s possible that has happened to President Obama, much to the chagrin of Glenn Greenwald.