Libyan strongman Muammar Qaddafi is dead. The news from the Middle East is vindication of the Obama administration's policy in Libya. A man who was an enemy of the American people, someone who killed Americans aboard Pan Am 103, someone who was taking out Americans and acting against our interests in the Middle East for decades has finally been eliminated from the scene.
And all this talk about "leading from behind" needs to be put in context. First of all, President Obama never said anything about "leading from behind." What the president said was he didn't want to put additional American troops in the Middle East in the middle of a Muslim country.
We are already fighting not only in Iraq but in Afghanistan. We have tremendous troubles in Pakistan. President Obama allowed the multi-national force to be in a position where they could act with tremendous American support.
The American public would never have supported pouring additional troops into Libya. By building an international coalition, the president managed, nonetheless, to make Americans part of the fight and oust Qaddafi. Critics on the right have flip-flopped on this issues from the beginning on whether or not America should have played a role, any role, in supporting the anti-Qaddafi forces. Today's events are another reminder of how pure political concerns can blind people to America's best.
Essentially America has been at war in Libya. And tonight or today, this morning, what we've seen is that that policy has led to the ouster and also the death of Muammar Qaddafi.
That's good news for America. I don't care if you're a Republican or a Democrat. This is good news.
For President Obama, after the death of Bin Laden, Al-Awlaki and now, indirectly, Qaddafi, he's left with a terrific narrative in terms of making the case that Democrats aren't weak on national security and that he has pursued a number of President Bush's policies in terms of being aggressive. This has been in service to America's national interest and the best outcomes for every American.If you look at the president's use of drones, for example, he decision to keep using Guantanamo Bay to house detainees, these are things that have absolutely antagonized the left in this country.
But if you're looking at results, you can't argue with the results. A man who was America's enemy, who was a destabilizing force in the Middle East and a supporter of anti-American forces has been removed from the stage.
Juan Williams is a writer, author and Fox News political analyst. His latest book "Muzzled: The Assault On Honest Debate" (Crown/Random House) was released in July.