Analysis: Obama continues building national security record

WASHINGTON -- A single moment that may have defined President Obama as a surprisingly tough commander in chief came in December 2009, when he accepted the Nobel Peace Prize while leading two wars.

"I face the world as it is and cannot stand idle in the face of threats to the American people," he told the Nobel Committee in Oslo. "For make no mistake: Evil does exist in the world. A non-violent movement could not have halted Hitler's armies. Negotiations cannot convince al-Qaeda's leaders to lay down their arms."

In the 11 months before the speech and the 22 months since, a president heralded as a liberal and hailed as a pacifist has built his national security record by taking out terrorists, stepping up drone attacks, sending 30,000 troops into Afghanistan and clearing the air for a NATO war against Libya that led to Moammar Gadhafi's death Thursday.

As he heads toward a difficult re-election race, polls show voters believe Obama is handling the title "commander in chief" better than other aspects of his job — the economy, for instance. Belittled during the 2008 campaign by Hillary Rodham Clinton as ill-equipped to handle 3 a.m. phone calls at the White House and by Republican Sen. John McCain for backing "the path of retreat and failure" in Iraq, Obama has built a record on national security that's proving difficult to attack.

"Without putting a single U.S. servicemember on the ground, we achieved our objectives, and our NATO mission will soon come to an end," the president said Thursday in the White House Rose Garden. (He might have added: without the initial backing of Pentagon leaders and without seeking approval from Congress.)

"This comes at a time when we see the strength of American leadership across the world," he said. "We've taken out al-Qaeda leaders, and we've put them on the path to defeat. We're winding down the war in Iraq and have begun a transition in Afghanistan. And now, working in Libya with friends and allies, we've demonstrated what collective action can achieve in the 21st century."

It was ironic that Obama's 2008 foes were left to applaud Thursday's events. On Capitol Hill, McCain said, "The administration deserves great credit" for Gadhafi's demise. Clinton — piling up frequent flier miles in Obama's employ as secretary of State — was hard at work in Afghanistan after meeting with Libyan transitional leaders in Tripoli on Tuesday. Her first reaction: "Wow!"

"There is a cold pragmatism about this president, and a very clear-eyed understanding that nation-states such as the United States have to use force or threaten to use force in order to achieve policy objectives," says Andrew Exum, senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security, who led Army platoons in Iraq and Afghanistan from 2001-04.

Gadhafi's downfall, however long in coming after his 42-year domination of Libya, could justify Obama's decision to "lead from behind" rather than help NATO and Libyan rebels with more U.S. air power early on. Still, after doling out credit, McCain said on CNN "this would have been over a long time ago" if the administration had done just that.

Not so, countered Democratic Sens. John Kerry of Massachusetts and Carl Levin of Michigan, who chair the Foreign Relations and Armed Services committees.