The Obama Administration and Choices

In reacting to the president's "fate of the union" address, Steve Clemons anticipates the Obama team having to make "some tough judgment calls" when it comes to the economy. This is also something that will have to occur with U.S. foreign and defense policy as well. (Policy toward India, the subject of yesterday's post, may well prove to be one of the first challenges.)

On the question of choices, Derek Reveron over at New Atlanticist made these observations:

With two important operations ongoing and security assistance programs with 149 countries, the U.S. military is in high demand. President Obama’s strategic outlook does not suggest this will change. And with the inability or unwillingness of allies and partners to increase contributions to international security, the post-modernists are likely to guide future defense spending to get Gates’ balanced force structure.

(Visit his post to get his description of the three "schools" for defense policy.)