# Make the case that ObL's death increases Obama's re-election chances **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [May 2, 2011, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/make-the-case-that-obls-death-increases-obamas-re-election-chances/580512 "2011-05-02T20:57:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Starving\_Artist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aeb1de/32.png) [@Starving\_Artist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Starving_Artist)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2011, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/make-the-case-that-obls-death-increases-obamas-re-election-chances/580512/61 "2011-05-03T01:11:19Z")
> [@gonzomax](#): > > Sure, Bush announced he was not even looking for Ben laden, but somehow he was in charge of the operations that took him down. Do you have any idea how dumb that is? Two things: One, Bush’s remarks may have been “misdirection”. An attempt to get bin Laden and other al-Qaeda operatives to become more careless in their movements and communications. And two, he had to put a stop to incessant “When are you gonna get bin Laden?” questions from the press. Bush and the CIA and military intellegence never stopped trying to locate bin Laden under Bush. Reports are coming out now which detail just how aggressively and for how long our government’s various agencies have been working to find bin Laden. ---
**Author:** ![fumster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e9c0ed/32.png) [@fumster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fumster)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2011, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/make-the-case-that-obls-death-increases-obamas-re-election-chances/580512/62 "2011-05-03T01:15:20Z")
> [@Starving\_Artist](#): > > Two things: One, Bush’s remarks may have been “misdirection”. An attempt to get bin Laden and other al-Qaeda operatives to become more careless in their movements and communications. > > And two, he had to put a stop to incessant “When are you gonna get bin Laden?” questions from the press. Hate to say it, but I agree. If they had made it all about Bin Laden and not gotten him then the US would look weak. What he actually did is a better question, but until we all get security clearances I’ll doubt we’ll ever know. ---
**Author:** ![G-SE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/f0a364/32.png) [@G-SE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/G-SE)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2011, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/make-the-case-that-obls-death-increases-obamas-re-election-chances/580512/63 "2011-05-03T01:18:37Z")
> [@gonzomax](#): > > Sure, Bush announced he was not even looking for Ben laden, but somehow he was in charge of the operations that took him down. Do you have any idea how dumb that is? Stop putting words in my mouth, please. Intelligence regarding the existence of Bin Laden’s couriers (which we then trailed to Bin Laden), their nicknames, and eventually their real identies, was all gathered by 2007. (During the Bush administration, like I said). I know that doesn’t taste as good as a brown skittle, but it’s the truth. ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2011, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/make-the-case-that-obls-death-increases-obamas-re-election-chances/580512/64 "2011-05-03T01:20:56Z")
Yeah, riiiiight, **Starving Artist** and **G-SE** A report from PBS mentions that when Obama took office, he moved most of the intelligence and military assets used to hunt insurgents in \*\*Iraq \*\*were redeployed to the Afghanistan and Pakistan border, not only to deal with the insurgents that had gained strength while Bush was fiddling around with Iraq, but to also to hunt for Bin Laden. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/1xRA2MNt6Gk/maxresdefault.jpg "During Bin Laden Raid, 'The Minutes Passed Like Days'") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1xRA2MNt6Gk) ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2011, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/make-the-case-that-obls-death-increases-obamas-re-election-chances/580512/65 "2011-05-03T01:21:49Z")
> [@G-SE](#): > > Stop putting words in my mouth, please. > > Intelligence regarding the existence of Bin Laden’s couriers (which we then trailed to Bin Laden), their nicknames, and eventually their real identies, was all gathered by 2007. (During the Bush administration, like I said). > > I know that doesn’t taste as good as a brown skittle, but it’s the truth. The compound was built in 2005. Who was president then? I guess I missed it when Bush took him out and had the body preserved until now. 2005 nothing \2006 nothing 2007 nothing \2008 nothing But 2011 Ben Laden killed.Bush did it. How dumb is that? ---
**Author:** ![Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/7ba0ec/32.png) [@Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omg_a_Black_Conservative)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2011, 1:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/make-the-case-that-obls-death-increases-obamas-re-election-chances/580512/66 "2011-05-03T01:28:51Z")
Claiming that the current president (Obama) “got” OBL by himself is partisan hackery, point blank. Of course, regrettably, it doesn’t matter if the fact of the matter is that this was the culmination of years of intelligence. Just as Obama is blamed for things he inherited, he’ll get the credit for this. Of course, it won’t help him any if unemployment is still over 10% and gas is $6 a gallon come November 2012. ---
**Author:** ![Naxos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/50afbb/32.png) [@Naxos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Naxos)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2011, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/make-the-case-that-obls-death-increases-obamas-re-election-chances/580512/67 "2011-05-03T01:37:24Z")
It does by default. It will not be the same in magnitude as if the ObL trash was shot if Repubs where in power, because in that case about 80% of all media, for 3 continuous months and at 24/7, would extol the sacrifice of hundreds of thousands of people and hundreds of billions of dollars for the pursuit and killing of one cave man. So more of the voting sheep… err… public would be swayed to keep the President that accomplished this for another term. For Obama, all this will blow over in a couple of days and the media will start questioning why did he wait two years to shoot him and how much help did the previous administration actually provided, if they haven’t started already. Not to mention a slew of brand new and fresh conspiracy theories from the conservative political commentators. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2011, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/make-the-case-that-obls-death-increases-obamas-re-election-chances/580512/68 "2011-05-03T01:37:37Z")
> [@](#): > > And two, he had to put a stop to incessant “When are you gonna get bin Laden?” questions from the press. Y’know, Obama also found a way to stop those incessant questions. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2011, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/make-the-case-that-obls-death-increases-obamas-re-election-chances/580512/69 "2011-05-03T01:44:48Z")
> [@sh1bu1](#): > > You conservatives never let facts get in your way, do you? If reality conflicts with your pre-conceived notions you just make shit up. Tone it down. This is excessively personal _and_ you’re accusing him of dishonesty, which belongs in the Pit and not this forum. ---
**Author:** ![marshmallow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@marshmallow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/marshmallow)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2011, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/make-the-case-that-obls-death-increases-obamas-re-election-chances/580512/70 "2011-05-03T01:51:50Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > Technical word for that type of voter is “moron”. Is there a specific technical term for people who purport to support representative democracy (whatever that means) but who complain that most people are vicious, ignorant, petty, or stupid? ---
**Author:** ![Grumman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/43a26b/32.png) [@Grumman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grumman)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2011, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/make-the-case-that-obls-death-increases-obamas-re-election-chances/580512/71 "2011-05-03T02:01:38Z")
> [@sh1bu1](#): > > You conservatives never let facts get in your way, do you? If reality conflicts with your pre-conceived notions you just make shit up. Maybe more than a few of the news reports about the circumstances surrounding bin Laden’s death are untrue, maybe every headline along the lines of [“How Pakistan helped the US get Osama”](http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=44777&Cat=2&dt=5/3/2011) is just a result of people trying to steal some credit for his demise, but I was not intentionally making anything up. ---
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2011, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/make-the-case-that-obls-death-increases-obamas-re-election-chances/580512/72 "2011-05-03T02:01:39Z")
> [@Starving\_Artist](#): > > Two things: One, Bush’s remarks may have been “misdirection”. An attempt to get bin Laden and other al-Qaeda operatives to become more careless in their movements and communications. > > And two, he had to put a stop to incessant “When are you gonna get bin Laden?” questions from the press. :eek: Wow. ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2011, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/make-the-case-that-obls-death-increases-obamas-re-election-chances/580512/73 "2011-05-03T02:03:12Z")
> [@marshmallow](#): > > Is there a specific technical term for people who purport to support representative democracy (whatever that means) but who complain that most people are vicious, ignorant, petty, or stupid? “Realistic”? ---
**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2011, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/make-the-case-that-obls-death-increases-obamas-re-election-chances/580512/74 "2011-05-03T02:16:13Z")
> [@G-SE](#): > > …Here’s what really happened: > > Years and years of intelligence gathering, which the majority of which was collected during the Bush Administration, finally led to Bin Laden’s whereabouts and Obama was the ever so lucky guy to get to say “Ok, go get him”… How exactly do you know that’s what really happened? You don’t know. Neither do I or anyone else who isn’t privy to all of the intelligence gathered and all of the operations that occurred over those 10 years. That said, like you, I also have opinions. And I believe those opinions fit the facts better than your’s. I’ll tell you my opinion. I find it a stretch that it takes a decade of dedicated competent intelligence gathering to find someone like OBL. I suspect that it took 8 years of incompetent, or perhaps semi-competent intelligence gathering (while being distracted by an unnecessary war and allowing politics to drive policy) followed by a couple of years of competent focused intelligence gathering and, yes, a little luck. Can I prove that? Nope. But it makes a lot more sense to me. ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2011, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/make-the-case-that-obls-death-increases-obamas-re-election-chances/580512/75 "2011-05-03T02:17:46Z")
> [@marshmallow](#): > > Is there a specific technical term for people who purport to support representative democracy (whatever that means) but who complain that most people are vicious, ignorant, petty, or stupid? Winston Churchill? ---
**Author:** ![humanafterall](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/humanafterall/32/19654_2.png) [@humanafterall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/humanafterall)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2011, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/make-the-case-that-obls-death-increases-obamas-re-election-chances/580512/76 "2011-05-03T02:35:07Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > It was all a deeply laid plan. > > You aren’t naive enough to believe Osama is really dead, are you? No no - he is in hiding, ready to assist his Muslim brother in whatever way necessary. > > Obama must be desperate - first that badly faked birth certificate (like they had pdf back in 1961 - who do they think they are kidding?), now this transparently faked death. You mark my words - once the campaign gets rolling, Islamo-fascists will be going down faster than the interns at the Clinton Memorial Library. > > Not that I’m worried - I’m selling way short on pork bellies. Once Caliph BHO imposes _sharia_ law on the country, I will be ready to start funding the Lutheran resistance. > > Regards, > Shodan And next you will say that the strike team were all members of the Bavarian Illuminati? ---
**Author:** ![Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/f04885/32.png) [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qin_Shi_Huangdi)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2011, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/make-the-case-that-obls-death-increases-obamas-re-election-chances/580512/77 "2011-05-03T03:09:04Z")
> [@davidm](#): > > And then there’s this: > > Osama bin Laden raid yields trove of computer data > [http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0511/54151.html#ixzz1LF8pM9yr](http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0511/54151.html#ixzz1LF8pM9yr) > Imagine us rolling up most of the Al Qaeda network worldwide. That has to count for something. I wonder what the effect would be if say hardcore pornography was found on OBL’s harddrive. > [@Naxos](#): > > It does by default. > > It will not be the same in magnitude as if the ObL trash was shot if Repubs where in power, because in that case about 80% of all media, for 3 continuous months and at 24/7, would extol the sacrifice of hundreds of thousands of people and hundreds of billions of dollars for the pursuit and killing of one cave man. So more of the voting sheep… err… public would be swayed to keep the President that accomplished this for another term. > > For Obama, all this will blow over in a couple of days and the media will start questioning why did he wait two years to shoot him and how much help did the previous administration actually provided, if they haven’t started already. > > Not to mention a slew of brand new and fresh conspiracy theories from the conservative political commentators. You do realize most of the media is centre-left (with the obvious exception of Fox News). One political benefit for the GOP is that the substance-less candidates (such as Trump) will start shutting up and give room to the serious ones. ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2011, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/make-the-case-that-obls-death-increases-obamas-re-election-chances/580512/78 "2011-05-03T03:10:21Z")
> [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](#): > > I wonder what the effect would be if say hardcore pornography was found on OBL’s harddrive. That implies it’s possible for a hard drive to exist without porn. ---
**Author:** ![Naxos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/50afbb/32.png) [@Naxos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Naxos)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2011, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/make-the-case-that-obls-death-increases-obamas-re-election-chances/580512/79 "2011-05-03T03:11:44Z")
> [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](#): > > … > You do realize most of the media is centre-left (with the obvious exception of Fox News)… Read up on the ownership of media in the US market… you’re lacking basic information. ---
**Author:** ![Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/f04885/32.png) [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qin_Shi_Huangdi)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2011, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/make-the-case-that-obls-death-increases-obamas-re-election-chances/580512/80 "2011-05-03T03:14:01Z")
> [@Naxos](#): > > Read up on the ownership of media in the US market… you’re lacking basic information. Ownership…smahnership, you can better gauge it by what the talking heads say. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/make-the-case-that-obls-death-increases-obamas-re-election-chances/580512.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/make-the-case-that-obls-death-increases-obamas-re-election-chances/580512.md?page=5)