Obama relying on student's spin on Syria?

NEW YORK – Evidence is mounting that the strategy by Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Secretary of State John F. Kerry to cast members of the Free Syria Army as “moderates” among the rebel forces opposing the government of Bashir al-Assad was the brain-child of Elizabeth O’Bagy, a 26-year-old graduate student pursuing a Ph.D. in Arab studies and political science at Georgetown University, who is working on a dissertation on woman’s militancy.
 

 
 
In his testimony before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Tuesday, Kerry cited O’Bagy, arguing that the war in Syria is “not being waged entirely or even predominately by dangerous Islamists and al-Qaida die-hards,” but rather the struggle is being led but “moderate opposition forces – a collection of groups known as the Free Syria Army.”
 
 
Kerry was citing an opinion piece O’Bagy wrote for the Wall Street Journal on Aug. 30 titled “On the Front Lines of Syria’s Civil War.” It ran with a tag-line “The conventional wisdom – that jihadists are running the rebellion [in Syria] – is not what I’ve witnessed on the ground.”
 
The O’Bagy narrative, however, is contradicted by intelligence estimates and experts specializing in the region.
 
On April 27, the New York Times reported that the Jabhat al-Nursa Front, a group declared a terrorist organization by the U.S. State Department, has pledged allegiance to al Qaida’s top leader, Ayman al-Zawahiri, and remains the group of choice for foreign jihadis pouring into Syria.
 
Read more at http://www.wnd.com/2013/09/obama-relying-on-students-spin-on-syria/#g5I1ht5LukB3ghtB.99

O'Bagy is working for the Institute for the Study of War, a think tank that 'provides research and analysis regarding issues of defense and foreign affairs'.  This group was founded in '07 by Kimberly Ellen Kagan who is an American historian who supported the the supported the surge in Iraq and has since advocated for an expanded and restructured American military campaign in Afghanistan.  The Washington Post described the organization as favoring an "aggressive foreign policy" and its founder and president, Kimberly Kagan, as "hawkish.

So that sort of lets you know where these people are coming from.  They seem to favor US involvement in Syria.  And I'm not sure its a good idea for the White House to take seriously the opinions of a grad student.  I thought he supposedly had Cabinet members to whom he could take advise.  He should be relying on advice from the CIA and the Joint Chiefs of Staff...not a grad student.

Is it any wonder that Obama has painted himself into a corner over this mess in Syria?  Is it any wonder that Libya and Egypt situation has been bungled?  Or that Putin and moist of the world no longer respects the United States?   

I the past hour, I heard this girl got fired from the Institute for the Study of War, for claiming she had her doctorate.  Turns out she's just a 26 year old grad student who apparently has ties to groups associated with the Syrian rebellion.  Ties doesn't make an expert,  Yet the Obama administration, John McCain and John Kerry have used her as an expert on the situation over there.

Might explain why we are in the mess we're in.

Im wondering te real reason obama is pushing for this. It cant just be the use of chem weapons, if so why not have acted months ago? Or did he completely misread the sitch, and get too far out in front, and now hes trying to put on te breaks, while continuing to i guess try to look strong on the issue, or at least in his mind. Or is this just the next distraction from hia domestic failures?

Guys, you realize that on the eve of 9/11, this President asked us to aid and abet the Muslim Brotherhood and....Al Qaida.  The very people who bombed the twin towers 12 years ago!  Al Qaida is the enemy!  And they make up a large part of the Syrian rebels.  According to the Washington Times the administration is downplaying Al Qaida's influence, but that garbage.  For 2 years the Obama admi8nistration argued that the Syrian rebellion was rife with Al Qaida fighters.  We've seen videos of these monsters eating the heart of a fallen enemy.  But In hearings before Congress last week, John Kerry said he generally agreed with the assessment, written by Elizabeth O'Bagy.
 
I have nothing but disdain for this creep in the White house anymore.  I think he's a traitor for supplying them with arms, and for allowing Benghazi to occur without sending help to those men who died over there.  Today is the 1 year anniversary of Benghazi and the guy responsible for it has been interviewed by both CNN and AP.  Yet we cant find him???  We cant bring him in?
 
Bull crap.  This administration doesn't want to bring him in because of what we might learn.  That we have been aiding Al Qaida with arms and weapons.