Politics/Government · Security
What should be the U.S. policy on drone use overseas?
Michael Olson May 23, 2013, 7:32 AM May 23, 2013
AP: President Barack Obama on Thursday defended America's controversial drone attacks as legal, effective and a necessary linchpin in an evolving U.S. counterterrorism policy. But he acknowledged the targeted strikes are no "cure-all" and said he is haunted by the civilians unintentionally killed.
"For the first time, the U.S. government has acknowledged killing four American citizens in lethal drone strikes far outside traditional battlefields, confirming information that had been widely known but has only recently been unclassified under orders of the president," writes NPR's Carrie Johnson. "Attorney General Eric Holder sent a letter to Congress on Wednesday explaining that only one of the four dead U.S. citizens was explicitly targeted."
President Barack Obama addressed the nation Thursday afternoon to discuss these drone deaths and a revised counterterrorism policy.
Associated Press:
Obama "believes that we need to be as transparent about a matter like this as we can, understanding that there are national security implications to this issue and to the broader issues involved in counterterrorism policy," White House spokesman Jay Carney told reporters Wednesday.
Today's Question: What should be the U.S. policy on drone use overseas?
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