The Obama Way

The strike against Osama Bin Laden speaks volumes about president Obama's leadership style. In his presidential campaign, Obama was very direct on his approach to Osama Bin Laden: if elected he would track down and kill Bin Laden even if it meant unilateral actions in Pakistan. This was a marked departure from candidate Obama's overall stance on national security and foreign policy, where he pledged to end the Bush-era unilateralism in favor of a multilateral approach to international affairs.

President Obama has been true to his word on both counts - trampling Pakistani sovereignty on the one hand while refusing to take a leadership role in the coalition of forces seeking to end the reign of Omar Kadafi.

What then, have we learned about President Obama's presidential timber? Firstly, he is deliberate in his decision-making while having the mettle to make the hard calls. Secondly, the buck really stops on his desk on important matters: pundits have criticized his use of the first person when discussing the mission, but the shoe fits - Obama is intimately involved in key administration decisions. Thirdly, everything is situational. While he ha over riding domestic and foreign policy visions, President Obama decides each issue on its own merits. These characteristics - on vivid display in recent days - hold true on domestic issues as well.