There is a growing sense among Americans outside the Beltway that while President Obama may be a good talker, he is a lousy manager.

The president doesn't order the military to seize political opponents. He doesn't order his intelligence community to lie about national security for political purposes. He uses the military or intelligence communities to protect the United States and our citizens, not to help him win elections.

Whatever the final outcome in Iraq, our men and women in uniform should stand tall with pride for a job well done. It was our political leaders - of both parties and both presidencies - who failed us.

Every president, as he nears the end of his final term in office, thinks about his place in history.

We have a war dictator who was not elected, he snuck in. so he punishes people that threaten him in any way, or even say something he doesn't like. It has no resemblance to democracy.

In one way or another, President Obama's critics will dog him all the way to Oslo for the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony, and even his admirers will continue to have doubts about his accomplishments if not his promise.

War should be the politics of last resort. And when we go to war, we should have a purpose that our people understand and support.

I think that my parents wanted my brother and I to do what they couldn't have done and live a free life and not worry about war.