Obama’s Record On “Carpet Bombing” Foreign Policy Isn’t Good

Obama may decry “carpet bombing” civilians as a foreign policy, but his own record doesn’t look too good. “The world will look to us to help solve these problems, and our answer needs to be more than tough talk or calls to carpet bomb civilians,” President Obama said in tonight’s State of the Union speech. Obama's statement, which was meant to address the threat of Islamic State groups in the Middle East seemed aimed at some of the more hawkish politicians that have criticized Obama’s foreign policies. But the words had an uncomfortable undertone. The Obama administration has used drone strikes with a frightening comfort, and the bombings do not always hit the bad guys that the White House claims. In April, a bombing by drones killed two hostages. There have been many civilian casualties. Recently, an American raid even bombed a Doctors Without Borders hospital, killing both civilian patients and the doctors trying to aid them. Calling for bombing “may work as a TV sound bite, but it doesn’t pass muster on the world stage,” the President said. The sentiment is admirable, but it proves that living up to ideals is a lot harder than espousing them.