1'I don't oppose all wars/ the Illinois state senator told those assembled in Chicago on 2 October 2002 for an anti-Iraq War rally. 'What I am opposed to is a dumb war.'1 Elected president of the United States six years and one month later, Barack Obama was soon provided with ample opportunities to parse the distinction. The man who ordered the immediate ramping up of drone strikes in a fierce policy of targeted killing against the al-Qaeda and Taliban cadres seeking refuge in Pakistan was certainly no pacifist. And although the new president did make good on his commitment to withdraw the majority of American combat troops from Iraq, he also approved a substantial escalation of the war in Afghanistan, against the pointed advice of some in his administration and amidst growing unease among the general public. The next test was going to be Iran. Israel's panic regarding a nuclear-capable Iran and Washington's promise not to accept such an outcome strained against the administration's palpable reluctance to become involved in a third war in the Muslim world.
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