During the campaign, when asked about the genocide in Darfur, Candidate Obama said, “We can’t say ‘never again’ and then allow it to happen again. And, as President of the United States, I don’t intend to abandon people or turn a blind eye to slaughter.” The candidate also spoke of “ratcheting up sanctions” and “organizing the European Union to be a part of those sanctions.” His campaign’s policy paper, titled the “Obama-Biden Plan,” stated, “As president, Obama will take immediate steps to end the genocide in Darfur by increasing pressure on the Sudanese and pressure the government to halt the killing and stop impeding the deployment of a robust international force.”
Fast forward to June 2009. Thus far, President Obama and his Administration have displayed no “immediate” response to the Darfur crisis or any willingness to “pressure” the Sudanese government. Instead we have seen stalls, delays and a very worrisome conciliatory tone in the U.S. response to the ongoing genocide in Darfur. According to a recent article in the Washington Post, Obama’s Special Envoy to Sudan, retired Air Force Maj. Gen. J. Scott Gration, has advocated easing some American sanctions and upgrading U.S. diplomatic relations with Sudan’s government to induce cooperation.
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