Obama continued the War on Terror through rhetorical seduction.

Evidence

After Obama won the election, he continued Bush’s second-term foreign policy agenda. While he retreated rhetorically from the use of harsh Islamophobic language, in practice he sent thirty thousand more troops to Afghanistan, expanded the war to Pakistan, and tried to alter the Status of Forces Agreement in Iraq so as to not only extend the US occupation but also grant immunity to US troops from Iraqi prosecution. Not only did he carry out far more drone attacks on Afghanistan and Pakistan than his predecessor, he also integrated them into his strategies for Yemen and Somalia. He made a show of demonstrating his loyalty to Israel and failed, like every previous president, to prevent Israeli attacks on Palestinians. — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 579 (#expands, via linked claim)

In 2012, Obama’s Defense Strategic Guidance document, titled “Sustaining U.S. Global Leadership: Priorities for 21st Century Defense,” refocused US foreign policy and its military structure. It made clear that the United States will continue to fight against “violent extremists,” even though the assassination of bin Laden has diminished al-Qaeda. As the report states, “its affiliates remain active in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Yemen, Somalia, and elsewhere”; the US military will “monitor” these groups and strike “the most dangerous groups and individuals when necessary.” In short, Obama would continue the War on Terror on nonstate actors through surveillance, but also through drone attacks and the use of Special Operations Forces. — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 433 (#expands, via linked claim)

Categorization

• corroborated: 2 independent passages support this claim
• XREF: connects to: Obama’s engagement with Islam combined strategic accommodation and intentional distance. — Khaled A. Beydoun, American Islamophobia_ Understanding…, 319; Obama’s presidency mutated and advanced rather than ended the war on terror — Khaled A. Beydoun, American Islamophobia_ Understanding…, 329; Obama’s rhetoric masked drone strikes and mosque surveillance. (+9 more)

Related

• Obama continued and expanded Bush’s imperial wars despite softer rhetoric (similarity 0.93)
• Obama’s defense guidance explicitly continued the war on terror after bin Laden (similarity 0.91)
• Failed Iraq and Afghan wars drove Obama toward a rebranded smarter war on terror (similarity 0.91)
• Obama’s liberal-rhetoric foreign policy continued Bush-era imperial military operations. (similarity 0.90)
• Obama’s rebranded war on terror kept drone and special-forces targeting against Muslims (similarity 0.89)
• Obama’s defense guidance continued the War on Terror via drones and special forces (similarity 0.88)
• Obama’s presidency mutated and advanced rather than ended the war on terror (similarity 0.88)
• Obama’s realist framing masked a continuation of Bush-era imperial warfare (similarity 0.88)
• Obama’s inaugural staff retained Bush hawks while launching new wars (similarity 0.86)
• Obama continued the War on Terror with rhetoric rather than swords (similarity 0.84)
• Obama’s rhetoric masked drone strikes and mosque surveillance. (similarity 0.84)
• Obama’s Cairo speech repackaged rather than abandoned the imperial frame (similarity 0.84)
• Homegrown terrorism panic let Obama continue Bush-era war policies (similarity 0.84)
• Obama’s oratory concealed continued drone strikes and mosque surveillance (similarity 0.83)
• Failed counterinsurgency forced Obama back to counterterrorism and drone warfare (similarity 0.83)

Broader Connections

• Obama continued and expanded Bush’s imperial wars despite softer rhetoric #expands (0.80) — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 579
• Obama’s defense guidance continued the War on Terror via drones and special forces #expands (0.60) — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 433
• War on Terror rhetoric revived vocabulary from America’s earlier race-based persecutions. #expands (0.60)
• Homegrown terrorism panic let Obama continue Bush-era war policies #exemplifies (0.50) — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 499
• Obama extended and codified Bush’s counterterrorism powers over US citizens #expands (0.50) — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 581
• Obama revived the al-Qaeda threat despite its near-extinction to salvage failing counterinsurgency #exemplifies (0.50) — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 584