Mission Impossible to Define

James Carafano / March 24, 2011

The Daily Caller reports: “Some Democratic advocates are already touting President Barack Obama’s Libyan intervention as a success, but others, including Democratic foreign-policy gurus, worry that a continued stand-off will damage the president’s polls and wreck efforts to boost the role of transnational organizations, such as the United Nations.”

It is not surprising, liberals are all over the map, or for that matter conservatives have very different views of what the White House is up to. That’s because the President has finally succeeded in bringing Washington together—all sides are confused over what exactly the mission in Libya is. Most media outlets agree. We are currently seeing headlines like: “NATO Struggles to Define Libya Role“, “Navy chief: We don’t know what happens next in Libya war“, and “No ‘timeline’ for end of Libya operation”

An ill-defined mission can spell disaster for a military operation. A clear declaration of purpose is vital to avoid “mission creep” – an expansion of commitments beyond the original goal of the operation. First and foremost, the President must clearly articulate the mission of U.S. operations in Libya and clarify U.S. interests. Neither stating that the U.S. is helping “protect civilians” nor declaring that American ground troops will not be applied is sufficient. Stating that the U.S. is not pursuing “regime change” is a declaration of what the mission is not, not what it is. (more…)