Politics Drive Strategy

Stephen Biddle, noted military analyst and author, nods approvingly to the story in Bob Woodward's new book where the president says that he can't support a long-term expansion of the Afghanistan conflict without splintering the Democratic base. While the Faux News talking heads shriek about the president suborning domestic politics to military decisions, Biddle notes that it's what all competent presidents do.

Waging war requires resources -- money, troops, and equipment -- and in a democracy, resources require public support. In the United States, the people's representatives in Congress control public spending. If a majority of lawmakers vote against the war, it will be defunded, and this means failure every bit as much as if U.S. soldiers were outfought on the battlefield. A necessary part of any sound strategy is thus its ability to sustain the political majority needed to keep it funded, and it's the president's job to ensure that any strategy the country adopts can meet this requirement. Of course, war should not be used to advance partisan aims at the expense of the national interest; the role of politics in strategy is not unlimited. But a military strategy that cannot succeed at home will fail abroad, and this means that politics and strategy have to be connected by the commander in chief.

This does not simply mean cheerleading for whatever plan looks best on narrow military grounds. Yes, presidents must work to promote public support for their policy. But strategy is the art of the possible. If a military plan cannot be made palatable to a working majority of lawmakers, it will lose and has to be changed to one that can -- and it's the president's job to do so. This requires that any sound strategy must be shaped with domestic politics in mind -- anything else would be malpractice.

Biddle's commentary is much more artful than my own two cents, but that's why he makes the big bucks and hobnobs with important people. I don't think that Obama made the right decision when he agreed to go with the 30,000 troop surge with the provision of reducing troops starting in July 2011, but I do recognize the role of politics as a driver of military strategy.

Comments

[Thomas]

war should not be used to advance partisan aims at the expense of the national interest

Should not, certainly. The problem is that it often is. Unfortunately, with the current state of American politics, there is no mechanism in place to prevent or punish such things.