Best Defense
Thomas E. Ricks' daily take on national security.

Three parties missing in action on Libya plus two bonus observations

–Former regime element Peter Feaver asks an interesting question about the administration’s debate on Libya: Where in the world is Mr. Joe Biden? Normally you can’t get the guy to shut up. I once did an interview where I asked one question and he talked for 45 minutes straight. I fled with my other 9 ...

By , a former contributing editor to Foreign Policy.
Wikimedia Commons
Wikimedia Commons
Wikimedia Commons

--Former regime element Peter Feaver asks an interesting question about the administration's debate on Libya: Where in the world is Mr. Joe Biden? Normally you can't get the guy to shut up. I once did an interview where I asked one question and he talked for 45 minutes straight. I fled with my other 9 questions unasked. Once I had escaped, I vowed not to interview him again, and have kept that promise. So maybe we should just count our blessings. Word (see update in the last paragraph) is he was against intervening in Libya, which would mean that "the Biden streak" of being consistently wrong remains alive.   

–Former regime element Peter Feaver asks an interesting question about the administration’s debate on Libya: Where in the world is Mr. Joe Biden? Normally you can’t get the guy to shut up. I once did an interview where I asked one question and he talked for 45 minutes straight. I fled with my other 9 questions unasked. Once I had escaped, I vowed not to interview him again, and have kept that promise. So maybe we should just count our blessings. Word (see update in the last paragraph) is he was against intervening in Libya, which would mean that "the Biden streak" of being consistently wrong remains alive.   

–Speaking of AWOL politicos, another friend asks: Whatever happened to the Tea Party? Was that just a little shenanigan to keep us entertained until the real world started revolting or melting down, as the case may be?

–And why are Arab aircraft MIA from this intervention? Time for a little tokenism, at the very least. Word Sunday was that Qatar had some planes heading to the fight. But the leader of the Arab League seemed to be scrambling away backwards from it.

Also, a thought that has been missing from the discussion: One of the biggest differences from this and previous no-fly zones is the extraordinary growth of drone aircraft since the last time we did one. I would bet there are dozens of Predators and some Global Hawks and others orbiting over western Libya right now, identifying targets, intercepting signals and drawing fire from air defense installations. As an Air Force general once put it, every single one of them drones is willing to die for its country. 

Finally, I grow weary of talk of an "exit strategy." It is a canard and a false concept. Can anyone remember the last time there actually was an exit strategy going in that actually worked? Military actions aren’t interstates.

Thomas E. Ricks is a former contributing editor to Foreign Policy. Twitter: @tomricks1

Read More On Libya | Oil Production

More from Foreign Policy

The USS Nimitz and Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force and South Korean Navy warships sail in formation during a joint naval exercise off the South Korean coast.
The USS Nimitz and Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force and South Korean Navy warships sail in formation during a joint naval exercise off the South Korean coast.

America Is a Heartbeat Away From a War It Could Lose

Global war is neither a theoretical contingency nor the fever dream of hawks and militarists.

A protester waves a Palestinian flag in front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, during a demonstration calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. People sit and walk on the grass lawn in front of the protester and barricades.
A protester waves a Palestinian flag in front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, during a demonstration calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. People sit and walk on the grass lawn in front of the protester and barricades.

The West’s Incoherent Critique of Israel’s Gaza Strategy

The reality of fighting Hamas in Gaza makes this war terrible one way or another.

Biden dressed in a dark blue suit walks with his head down past a row of alternating U.S. and Israeli flags.
Biden dressed in a dark blue suit walks with his head down past a row of alternating U.S. and Israeli flags.

Biden Owns the Israel-Palestine Conflict Now

In tying Washington to Israel’s war in Gaza, the U.S. president now shares responsibility for the broader conflict’s fate.

U.S. President Joe Biden is seen in profile as he greets Chinese President Xi Jinping with a handshake. Xi, a 70-year-old man in a dark blue suit, smiles as he takes the hand of Biden, an 80-year-old man who also wears a dark blue suit.
U.S. President Joe Biden is seen in profile as he greets Chinese President Xi Jinping with a handshake. Xi, a 70-year-old man in a dark blue suit, smiles as he takes the hand of Biden, an 80-year-old man who also wears a dark blue suit.

Taiwan’s Room to Maneuver Shrinks as Biden and Xi Meet

As the latest crisis in the straits wraps up, Taipei is on the back foot.