Obama at West Point: A Study in Ambiguity of Purpose

The progressive form and corresponding theme of transition in Barack Obama's West Point address—especially in the context of his speeches in Cairo, at the United Nations, and in Oslo—insinuated an attitude of peace, which conflicted with his announcement of a new war-fighting strategy in Afghanistan. The resulting ambiguity of purpose about a way forward in and out of Afghanistan tilted the president's rhetoric toward the mindset of war but left open and unresolved the embedded question of peace building. This rhetorical exercise in strategic ambiguity, understood as an episode of symbolic action, managed immediate political tensions while keeping open presidential options for adapting to changing circumstances in a dynamic situation.