Commander in Chief

President Obama took the opportunity of a press conference today to chastise the GOP candidates for their "loose talk" about going to war.

"What's said on the campaign trail, you know, those folks don't have a lot of responsibilities. They're not commander-in-chief. . . . When I see the casualness with which some of these folks talk about war, I'm reminded of the costs involved in war. I'm reminded of the decision that I have to make, in terms of sending our young men and women into battle, and the impacts that has on their lives, the impact it has on our national security, the impact it has on our economy. . . .This is not a game, and there's nothing casual about it."

He went further and said that those who are "beating the drum of war" should explain what they think the costs and the benefits would be.

"They should explain to the American people exactly why they would do that and what the consequences would be.  Everything else is just talk."

Obama noted the irony in the fact that, when pressed for specifics on how to respond to Iran, they wind up just repeating his policies of the past few years.

"It indicates to me that [their criticisms are] more about politics than actually trying to solve a difficult problem."

 Bravo, Mr. Commander in Chief.

Ralph