COMMENTARY | President Barack Obama went before the American people in his speech to defend his military actions and to better outline the United States future involvement in the Libyan conflict. President Obama described intervention in Libya as a "unique ability to stop violence on a horrific scale by acting in a broad coalition with the support of Arab countries in Libya."
The no-fly zone, which is heading into its 10th day, has so far been led by U.S. military forces. Democrats and Republicans have questioned both the mission, and the cost to the American people. Many members in Congress feel that the president should have taken his case for war directly to them first before making the decision for military intervention in Libya.
The president said in his speech that intervention in Libya presented an opportunity to avoid a humanitarian crises in which innocent people were being killed by Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi. Gadhafi has said that he would show no mercy to the rebels or his own people in order to maintain power.
The president in his speech stressed that the Libyan people in the end will be able to determine their own destiny and that the main goal was not to force a regime change through military action, but through political reform.
"If we tried to overthrow Gadhafi by force, our coalition would splinter," Obama said. "History is not on Gadhafi's side."
In the end, the American people do not know what the final price for military intervention in Libya will be, nor do we know how long we will be there. The president is convinced that "failure to act in Libya would have carried a far greater price for America," but only time will tell if he is proven right.
The United States will now have a limited role in the no-fly zone and will continue to work closely together with our allies. Command of both the no-fly zone and the task of protecting Libyan citizens will be handed over to NATO on Wednesday.
The president has a tough road ahead proving that the conflict in Libya is worth military intervention to the American public, but his speech to clarify the role of the U.S. military was a good start. In the days ahead it is important for the president to ensure that the Gadhafi dictatorship ends and a new beginning for the Libyan people begins.
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