Republicans see political opportunity in Obama response to failed airplane bomb
Republicans are jumping on President Obama's response to the attempted Christmas Day bombing of a U.S. airliner as the latest evidence that Democrats do not aggressively fight terrorism to protect the country, returning to a campaign theme that the GOP has employed successfully over the past decade
Since before Obama was sworn into office, Republicans have been building a case that he is weak on national security, and in the wake of the intelligence and security failures that led to last week's incident, they think that narrative might stick. Congressional Republicans and GOP pollsters said they believe the administration's response to the failed attack on a Detroit-bound plane -- along with Obama's decisions on the military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and the intelligence lapses connected to November's massacre at Fort Hood, Tex. -- damage the Democratic brand.
After dispatching surrogates to speak on his behalf over the weekend, Obama tried to quell critics who thought he had been quiet for too long by addressing the nation Tuesday for the second time in two days. But Republicans said his admission of "systemic failures" by U.S. intelligence agencies -- which did not share fully or act upon information about the Nigerian suspect on the Northwest Airlines flight -- underscored what they have been arguing for days. The result of the GOP offensive could be to create doubt, even fear, among the American public that Obama cannot protect them.
Republicans spent much of the 2008 campaign criticizing Obama for his lack of national security experience and have not relented since he took office almost a year ago. Eleven months out from the 2010 midterm elections, however, pollsters said it is difficult, if not impossible, to predict whether the issue will drive voters.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/12/29/AR2009122903379.html?wpisrc=newsletterLets see the worst attack on US soil happened on who's watch?
Thought so!