After hundreds of strikes in half a dozen nations, President Obama wants to leave office claiming that his drone program has killed only around 100 innocents — independent estimates put that figure much higher — and that its future practice will be safely contained in a reasonable legal framework of his own making.
This is simply not true. On the contrary, Obama’s drone war is responsible for untold civilian casualties and has engendered anti-American sentiment among people otherwise inclined to be our allies. It has dangerously expanded the power of the presidency to include global assassination of anyone, anywhere, without due process — including children and American citizens.
No matter how else we remember President Obama, the drone war is a black mark on his legacy. Its gravity cannot and must not be downplayed.
At rare.us
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