Dedication

Yesterday’s announcement of the administration’s Afghan build-up brought this shot to mind.

It ran on the TIME WH photo blog about two weeks ago and was taken during a dedication ceremony of the Abraham Lincoln Hall at the National Defense University at Fort McNair. (As you notice, Lincoln is on the program cover.) Beyond my discomfort seeing Obama in such perfect alignment with the top brass (did Obama and Gates pick out the same tie?), I’m sorry to see Obama’s affinity for Lincoln employed in the service of the war complex.

(image: unattributed. Caption (L to R) U.S. President Barack Obama, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Michael Mullen read their programs during a dedication ceremony of Abraham Lincoln Hall at the National Defense University at Fort McNair in Washington.)