Settle Scores With Those Who Have Killed Americans

Fairly or not, in the eyes of the world President Barack Obama's handling of the Syrian crisis has laid waste to what little remained of his claim to be a credible commander in chief. How to redeem his standing in short order? It won't be easy, but he could do worse than fall back on what increasingly appears to be one of his few core competencies: killing terrorists. The hit on Osama bin Laden was the scene of Obama's greatest triumph — one that he mercilessly rode to re-election in 2012. A worthy sequel would be raining down a similar form of raw justice on bin Laden's sidekick and successor, Ayman al-Zawahiri, or those responsible for the murder of Ambassador Chris Stevens and his colleagues in Benghazi, Libya, a year ago.

The president would be assured of near-unanimous approval at home. Foreign enemies would receive an always-useful reminder that American blood can't be spilt on the cheap. The dangerous perception setting in around the world of Obama's incredible shrinking presidency, which the Syria debacle has kicked into overdrive, might be stemmed, at least momentarily, as friend and foe alike see potent evidence that the U.S. president remains a force to be reckoned with internationally — a powerful, confident leader requiring their respect and fear rather than the America-doubting declinist who increasingly inspires only contempt and disdain. Finally, in the case of Zawahiri, his sudden demise would likely render an immediate strategic benefit, helping to disrupt and short-circuit the resurgence of al Qaeda's global threat, which has become so apparent in recent weeks and months.

The downside here, of course, is that Obama's ability to act against these high-value targets is largely dependent on the intelligence he's provided. But he's by no means a passive bystander in this regard. One hopes that he has made crystal clear with the powers that be at Langley that settling America's scores with the bloody masterminds of 9/11/2001 and 9/11/2012 is among his very highest priorities.

One of my most vivid memories of George W. Bush was that the man almost never let a meeting at which his intelligence chiefs were present pass without taking a moment to press them on the issue: “Where are we with Nos. 1 and 2 (bin Laden and Zawahiri)?” Year in and year out. Whether the particular meeting was about al Qaeda or the future of Cuba post-Fidel, it didn't matter. It was never far from his mind. The intelligence community knew it and acted accordingly in setting its collective priorities. And on May 2, 2011, Obama and the country reaped the benefits of the intelligence community's outstanding work and Bush's single-mindedness. It's imperative that this kind of doggedness and resolution with respect to the national interest once again emanate with clarity from the Oval Office.