Media Works Overtime to Make Obama the Hero of the Pirate Crisis

To read many of the media reports you might assume that the rookie president was on the phone giving the kill order the moment the pirates were ushered into their eternal reward. There's certainly a vested interest on the part of the media and the White House to show that Obama isn't the timid leader we fear he is.

However, Beldar isn't buying the spin:

UPDATE (Sun Apr 12 @ 8:45pm): If you're wondering why I've been so churlish in not extending even a nod of appreciation to our Commander in Chief, read this paragraph tucked away near the end of the New York Times' account of the rescue:

The Defense Department twice asked Mr. Obama for permission to use military force to rescue Captain Phillips, most recently late on Friday night, senior defense officials said. On Saturday morning, the president agreed to permit action, they said, but only if it appeared that the captain’s life was in imminent danger.

Then tell me: When, exactly, during this entire episode was Captain Phillips' life not in imminent danger? Why did Barack Obama have to sleep on the decision whether to permit our military commanders on the scene to use their own judgment as to whether to kill pirates who had attacked an American vessel and were holding its captain hostage? If this paragraph from the NYT is correct, then even if our forces had clear shots at all of the pirates simultaneously prior to Saturday morning, they lacked Obama's permission to take them. And that is outrageous and, on the part of our nominal Commander in Chief, pathetic.

Yes, I suppose Obama could have been more pathetic — he could have refused permission altogether. But Obama obviously thinks he's our Defense Lawyer in Chief, maybe Defense Lawyer for the World. And that's not the job he's in — that's emphatically not the oath he took last January, and there are times, including this one, when it could be inconsistent with the oath he took last January. Obama's operating under a delusion that is very dangerous for America and the rest of the free world. Color me unsurprised but still disappointed.

Other conservative commentators are saying they hope the positive attention Obama is getting from this incident will embolden him for future crises. I wouldn't count much on that.

The White House will continue a full-court press on this story to maximize whatever good it might do him. However, as more information comes out about the exact timeline of how everything happened, his role will be diminished.