GUANTANAMO, ABSENT IN THE ELECTORAL DEBATE (LIBÉRATION)

Wikileaks recently published new documents giving further detail about the American presence at Guantanamo, but the topic has remained outside of the central electoral debate in the US.

Libération takes a look at why the prison at Guantanamo has not been closed (despite Obama's promise), the reasons it does not figure among the American public's top priorities, and why both Obama and Romney are reluctant to make it an electoral message.

I am pleased to figure among the specialists interviewed in the article.

Read: Guantanamo, la grande absente du débat américain (Libération)

CAPITAL BRIEF - ROMNEY ON DEFENSE POLICY

Here is the sixth issue of Capital Brief, from July 17, analyzing Mitt Romney's (still vague) defense policy proposals and their consequences.

Click below to read the Brief.

SPOTLIGHT ON...: BOB BAUER, WHITE HOUSEL COUNSEL

When Greg Craig vacates his post at the end of the 2009, Robert Bauer, longtime Democratic legal counsel and Obama personal attorney, will become White House counsel.

Craig departs after a controversial tenure at the White House. He was a key figure behind Obama's decision to sign the executive order to close the prison at Guantanamo within one year, a January 22, 2010 deadline that will remain unmet. The president drew criticism on this issue from both the Left and the Right – both for wavering on the modalities of closing the camp and for being weak on terror, respectively. Craig also pushed hard to release Bush-era Department of Justice memos that attempted to legally justify torturous interrogation techniques and then lobbied for the release of Gitmo detainee photographs. Obama opted against this.

As a foreign policy advisor to Obama's campaign who hoped for a prime foreign policy post in the administration, Craig implicated himself in policy creation more than his predecessors. For this, he drew him criticism within the administration.

Bob Bauer, a partner at Perkins Cole, has advised the Democratic Party and key campaigns for a number of years. His expertise centers on the intricacies of domestic election law, particularly campaign finance reform, which he has often criticized.

Although the question remains as to how an election law expert will handle the myriad international questions that his job will demand, the appointment could signify that Obama is not looking to add yet another ambitious foreign policy heavyweight to his team. Instead, the choice of Bauer may shift the focus of White House counsel back to other key tasks of the job – among which are managing presidential pardons, overseeing judicial and executive appointments, and legal issues arising from presidential decisions.

-Amy Greene

THE WEEK IN US FOREIGN POLICY (9-15 NOVEMBER)

AFGHANISTAN
Obama has yet to issue a decision on an Afghan strategy. There are 4 options on the table - McChrystal's “all-in” of 40,000 troops; Gates/Clinton's preferred "middle road" of 30,000 troops; a more "user friendly" option of 20,000 troops; and a fourth with no numbers attached. The "user friendly" option would surely better suit the public mood – currently 54% of the American public disapproves of escalation. The fourth option is seen as a gesture to Joe Biden, the administration's leading voice against sending more troops.

Obama has demonstrated a tendency to err on the side of meticulous decision-making rather than on speed. But as David Broder noted, sometimes any decision is better than none. Having already promised (and sent) more troops this summer, Obama demands that any further US action must be accompanied by "offramps," effective means to hand the job over to sufficiently trained Afghans.

A series of cables sent to Obama by Ambassador and General Karl Eikenberry were leaked this week, refreshing a stale debate in Washington while giving the president some additional political cover. By arguing against troop escalation (that would diminish Afghan ability to meet the challenges of a post-American Afghanistan) and by questioning both Karzai and his government’s corruption, Eikenberry returned the focus to questions surrounding the still-undefined strategy: Is the goal to capture Al-Qaeda? To root out the Taliban? Is it to bring security to the Afghan people? To battle corruption? What role for Pakistan? No consensus seems to exist around where the central focus lies.

ASIA
Obama traveled to Asia this week in a multi-stop tour of the region scheduled around the APEC summit and subsequent ASEAN leaders meeting. He also held a bilateral with Russian President Medvedev. The APEC meeting produced underwhelming results on climate change, as leaders failed to formalize a binding accord in advance of December's Copenhagen Summit.

The trip marks a milestone in US-Burma relations in which Obama and Burmese leaders sat at the same table. Though not a bilateral, Obama used the occasion to introduce direct talks to the current sanctions-heavy policy and to call for the release of Aung San Suu Kyi. While looking for new avenues to cooperate with China, Obama and President Hu Jintao are expected to discuss the value of the Chinese currency, increasing Chinese consumption of US goods, bilateral economic relations, and human rights.

Obama also has an obligation to use this trip to reassure smaller regional allies who view America’s realpolitik approach vis-à-vis big powers with skepticism. Obama must reassure them that America will help mitigate the rise of China and uphold its security guarantees in the face of China’s rise, Russian ambitions, and North Korean proliferation. Obama must make the effort to show these smaller allies that America will not relax its commitments and thus make acquiescence to Beijing an undesired - yet necessary - political choice for these nations.

MIDDLE EAST
On Monday, November 9, Obama sat down one-on-one with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Major topics purportedly included Mahmoud Abbas' threat to quit and the consequences of a possible collapse of the Palestinian Authority on the flagging peace process. Since Secretary Clinton called Israel's nine-month suspension of new settlements "unprecedented," the White House has fought to repair the fallout from Clinton's gaffe. Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel called publicly for a full freeze. Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Bill Burns then said Israel's efforts "fall short" of their "obligations" under the roadmap. A good faith message to reassure Abbas, Burns' language is notable because Palestinians consider a settlement freeze an Israeli obligation rather than a mere “precondition.”

TERRORISM
Attorney General Eric Holder announced his decision to try 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and four other Gitmo detainees in civilian federal court in New York. Should problems arise in the prosecution, Obama risks backlash from politicians who do not want terrorists brought to court in their districts. The political price could be retaliation against other parts of the Obama agenda. Nonetheless, Obama's move demonstrates the administration's eagerness to bring the perpetrators to justice (Mohammed has repeatedly confessed not only to planning 9/11 but also to killing Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl). Many critics regret this move, denouncing the possible effects of redefining the events of 9/11 as a civil crime rather than an act of war.

-Amy Greene