Obama's Speech to the Nation on Libya

Tonight the president addressed the nation on U.S. involvement in the Libyan crisis on most major TV networks.  I happened to watch the speech on NBC this evening as he gave his address from the National Defense University in Washington, D.C.  President Obama has, for the most part, been absent from making public statements concerning America’s involvement in the Libyan uprising.  Just a couple of weeks ago the United States started operation “Odyssey Dawn.”  When I first heard the name of this operation I just assumed that it was the long-lost prequel to Homer’s, “The Odyssey.”  As it turns out, I was completely wrong about that.  “Odyssey Dawn” is the implementation of a no-fly zone over Libyan airspace to prevent Moammar Gadhafi from using his airpower to kill and intimidate civilian men and women so that he can retain power.

Many people are wondering why we would get involved in such a conflict when we have so many problems here at home as well as fighting two wars over seas.  Tonight the president stated that America had no intentions of being the permanent leader in helping the Libyans attain their goal of democracy.  Instead, the United States would hand over control of operations to NATO on Wednesday of this week.  President Obama also said, “Some nations may be able to turn a blind eye to atrocities in other countries.  The United States is different.” 

Only time will tell how this will play out for the president politically, and if our involvement is actually of assistance to the Libyan people or if we’re just fanning the flames of civil unrest in the Middle East.  If you happened to miss the president’s address, here is the full speech.