A complex action in Libya

President Barack Obama

In January, political editors looking ahead to this weekend in March might have thought President Barack Obama’s trip to Brazil would lead news coverage. In fact, they might already have been preparing a response to the inevitable criticism that Obama’s trip would cost too much. But it’s been an exceptionally busy few months in world events, and Obama’s trip was overshadowed by the biggest foreign policy decision of his presidency to date: the authorization of allied military action to support United Nations Security Council Resolution 1973, establishing a no-fly zone over Libya.

Support for a no-fly zone had been relatively strong among politicians and observers before the action. Senators like John Kerry (D-Massachusetts), John McCain (R-Arizona), and Joe Lieberman (I-Connecticut) all expressed support for a no-fly zone, and even New York Times columnist Nick Kristof got his hawk on in a column two weeks ago. But after airstrikes began Saturday, opponents began to come out of the woodwork. While Obama called for Libya’s leader, Muammar Qaddafi, to step down, Admiral Mike Mullen, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said Sunday that Qaddafi might remain in power despite the action. That contradiction led Politico – and politicos – to ask what the ultimate goal in Libya was.

More important, though, was the emerging frustration among Congressmen – though far from universal – that Obama didn’t appropriately consult Congress before beginning the action. Slate’s David Weigel pointed out that much of Congress wasn’t asking for explicit Congressional authorization of the action, as that would set a precedent for all military actions to require Congressional support. Still, perennial dark horse presidential candidate Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio) called the action “an impeachable offense.”

Meanwhile, the next step for the military action is a long-term enforcement of the no-fly zone, but exactly who will be enforcing the no-fly zone remains a point of contention among the allies. Obama made clear his intention to keep the no-fly zone a NATO operation, with the United States taking less than a leadership role. French and German representatives, however, remain concerned about NATO leadership, though their alternative appears to be unclear.

With all these moving parts, Obama faces several challenges as military action goes forward. How – and whether – he gets his house in order will shape his foreign policy actions for at least the remainder of his first term.

by ROBBIE OTTLEY