What did Obama know about ISIS, Iraq?

Mike Whitney Correspondent
“I think we have to understand first how we got here. We have been arming ISIS (the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria) in Syria. ISIS, an al Qaeda offshoot, has been collaborating with the Syrian rebels whom the Obama administration has been arming in their efforts to overthrow Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.” — Senator Rand Paul, Interview with CNN.
Today’s head-scratcher: How could a two-mile long column of jihadi-filled white Toyota Land Rovers barrel across the Syrian border into Iraq — sending plumes of dust up into the atmosphere — without US spy satellites detecting their whereabouts when those same satellites can read a damn licence plate from outer space? And why has the media failed to inquire about this massive intelligence failure?

Barack Obama is a big proponent of “inclusive democracy” which is why he wants Iraqi prime minister Nouri al Maliki to either include more Sunnis in the government or resign as PM.

Obama and Co want to give al Maliki the old heave-ho because he refused to let US troops stay in Iraq past the 2012 deadline and because he’s too close to Tehran.
Two strikes and you’re out, at least that’s how Washington plays the game.

So Maliki has got to go, and all the hoopla over sectarian issues is just pabulum for the News Hour.
It means nothing. The real goal is regime change.

That, and the partitioning of Iraq.
In fact, the de facto partitioning of Iraq has already taken place. The Sunnis have basically seized the part of the country where they plan to live.
The Kurds have nailed down their own territory, and the Shia will get Baghdad and the rest, including Basra.

So, the division of Iraq is already a done deal, just as long as al Maliki doesn’t gum up the works by deploying his army to retake the parts of the country that are now occupied by ISIS.

But the Obama team probably won’t allow that to happen, mainly because the big shots in Washington like things the way they are now.
They want an Iraq that is broken into smaller chunks and ruled by tribal leaders and warlords.

That’s what this is all about, splitting up the country along the lines that were laid out in an Israeli plan authored by Oded Yinon 30 years ago.
That plan has already been implemented which means Iraq, as we traditionally think of it, no longer exists.

It’s kaput. Obama and Co made sure of that. They weren’t satisfied with just killing a million Iraqis, polluting the environment, poisoning the water, destroying the schools, hospitals, roads, bridges, and leaving them to scrape by on meagre rations, foul water and a tattered electrical grid.

They had to come back and annihilate the state itself, erase the lines on the map, and remove any trace of a nation that was once a prosperous Middle East hub. Now the country is gone, vanished overnight. Poof. Now you see it, now you don’t.

Of course, al Maliki could try to reverse the situation, but he’s got his own problems to deal with.
It’s going to be hard enough for him just to hold onto power, let alone launch a sustained attack on a disparate band of cutthroats who are bent on wreaking havoc on oil wells, critical infrastructure, pipelines, reservoirs, etc as well as killing as many infidels as humanly possible.

No matter how you cut it, al Maliki is going to have his hands full. Obama has already made it plain that he’s gunning for him and won’t rest until he’s gone.
In fact, Secretary of State John Kerry is in the Middle East right now trying to drum up support for the “Dump Maliki” campaign.

His first stopover was Cairo where the Sunday Times announced he had come “to hasten the formation of a cross-sectarian government in Iraq” or inclusive government.

First we get rid of al Maliki, says Kerry, then we move on to less important matters, like that horde of jihadi desperados who are descending on Baghdad like a swarm of locusts.

And why isn’t Obama worried about a jihadi attack on Baghdad?
Think of it: If they did attack Baghdad and the capital fell into jihadi hands, then what?

Well, then the Dems would take the blame, they’d get their butts whooped in the upcoming midterms, and Madame Hillary would have to take up needlepoint because her chances of winning the 2014 presidential balloting would drop to zero.

So, the fallout would be quite grave. Still, Obama’s not sweating it, in fact, he’s not the least bit worried. Why?
Could it be that he knows something that we don’t know?

Could it be that US Intel agents have already made contact with these yahoos and gotten a commitment that they won’t attack Baghdad if they are allowed to remain in the predominantly Sunni areas which they already occupy? Is that it?

Did Obama offer the Baathists and Takfiris a quid pro quo which they graciously accepted?
It’s very likely, mainly because it achieves Obama’s strategic objective of establishing a de facto partition that will remain in effect unless al Maliki can whip up an army to retake lost ground which looks doubtful at this point.

By the way, according to the Telegraph, Obama and friends knew what ISIS was up to, and knew that the terrorist group was going to launch attacks on cities in the Sunni territories, just as they have.

The intelligence went straight to the top, where Obama and his neocon colleagues came up with the plan that is unfolding as we speak.
They figured, if they just look the other way and let these homicidal madhatters seize a few cities and raise a little Hell, they’d be able to kill two birds with one stone, that is, get rid of al Maliki and partition the country at the same time.

But, it’s not going to work out like Obama expects, mainly because this is just about the dumbest plan ever conjured up. I would give it an 80 percent chance blowing up in Obama’s face in less than a month’s time.

But, here’s the glitch: al Maliki is not a quitter, and he’s not going anywhere. In fact he’s digging in his heels. He’s not going to be blackmailed by the likes of Obama.
He’s going to this fight tooth and nail.

And he’s going to have help too, because young Shia males are flocking to the recruiting offices to join the army and the militias. And then there’s Russia; in a surprise announcement Russian president Vladimir Putin offered to assist al Maliki in the fight against the terrorists, a move that is bound to enrage Washington.

That makes a third front in which Russia and the US will be on opposite sides. It’s just like the good old days, right?
Putin seems to be resigned to the idea that Moscow and Washington are going to be at loggerheads in the future.

He’s not only opposed to a “unitary world order”, he’s doing something about it, putting himself and his country’s future at risk in order to stop the empire’s relentless expansion and vicious wars of aggression.

Needless to say, proxy wars like this can lead to rapid escalation which is always a concern when both parties have nuclear weapons at their disposal. — Counterpunch.