Hi Tom: Great piece. Yes, I think Bush/Cheney and Co. were "shocked and awed" by America's military might. And they preferred to use this instrument for at least two reasons: 1) As chicken hawks, they didn't know the limits of military power, and they didn't know how blunt an instrument this power truly is. To borrow from the debates, they thought they could wield many scalpels, but they ended up wielding meat cleavers, with devastating results for all; 2) They hated sharing power with Congress, so using military power was the way for Bush/Cheney to put into action their idea of the Unitary Executive branch with minimal interference and opposition from Congress. They preferred force to diplomacy not only overseas, but here at home. Not only did they not want to negotiate with terrorists--they didn't want to negotiate with Congress!
And unchecked hubris led to the failures you indicate.
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Hi Tom: Great piece. Yes, I think Bush/Cheney and Co. were "shocked and awed" by America's military might. And they preferred to use this instrument for at least two reasons: 1) As chicken hawks, they didn't know the limits of military power, and they didn't know how blunt an instrument this power truly is. To borrow from the debates, they thought they could wield many scalpels, but they ended up wielding meat cleavers, with devastating results for all; 2) They hated sharing power with Congress, so using military power was the way for Bush/Cheney to put into action their idea of the Unitary Executive branch with minimal interference and opposition from Congress. They preferred force to diplomacy not only overseas, but here at home. Not only did they not want to negotiate with terrorists--they didn't want to negotiate with Congress!
And unchecked hubris led to the failures you indicate.
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