Elizabeth O’Bagy (26) was fired from The Institute for the
Elizabeth O’Bagy
Study of War (ISW) for lying about having a Ph.D. degree from Georgetown University according to this webpage. O’Bagy. Both Secretary of State John Kerry and Senator John McCain (R-AZ) have quoted her. Kerry did so in the House Foreign Affairs Committee. It was O’Bagy who seems to have fueled the idea of “moderate rebels” in Syria. Never mind that John McCain journeyed to Syria to meet the moderates and then hold-up salim Idriss, the leader of the Free Syria Army, a “fine leader.” Idriss has said Israel is his “enemy” and Assad is his enemy because he protected “Israel” (and Christians, no doubt). In a video with Fox News’ Bret Baier, O’Bagy is very firm in her opinion that Bashar Assad’s government forces ARE NOT winning.
In December, O’Bagy publicly advocated against designating the al-Nusra Front, one of the five main Syrian rebel groups, a terrorist organization, as the Obama administration eventually did: “I’m not saying they aren’t a terrorist group,” O’Bagy said. “But given the circumstances and their cooperation with the opposition as a whole, designating them now would be disastrous.” Only four months later, al-Nusra pledged loyalty to al-Qaeda. Source: National Review
The founder of ISW, Kimberly Kagan, said she stands by all of O’Bagy’s statements and assertions (my interpretation) on Syria, but…Ms. Kagan, she works for the rebels she is trying to convince us to trust and fund. Everything must be considered biased. We have eyes, we have ears and we have a brain, and while she may believe al-Nusra is an acceptable group to fund, a thinking person, well-acquainted with terrorism as most American’s are today, wouldn’t follow her reasoning.
Kagan gave May of this year as a rough estimate of when O’Bagy’s biography on the ISW site was updated to state she had obtained her Ph.D. But the internet archive the Wayback Machine captured a version of O’Bagy’s biography page that listed her as in a joint Master’s/Ph.D. program as of June 23. Another organization O’Bagy was affiliated with, the Syrian Emergency Task Force, listed her as Dr. O’Bagy on May 13, however.
O’Bagy’s op-ed piece for the Journal, “On the Front Lines of Syria’s Civil War,” was cited by both Kerry and McCain last week. McCain read from the piece last Tuesday to Kerry, calling it “an important op-ed by Dr. Elizabeth O’Bagy.” The next day, Kerry also brought up the piece before a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing and described it as a “very interesting article” and recommended that members read it.
But the piece had also come under fire for misrepresenting her affiliations. Originally the op-ed only listed O’Bagy, 26, as only “a senior analyst” at the ISW, later adding a clarification that disclosed her connection to a Syrian rebel advocacy group. Source: Politico
According to the Politico article linked above, the Syrian Task Force is awaiting approval from the IRS for 501(c)(3) tax exemption status.
Five days ago from Daily Caller:
On Wednesday, Secretary of State John Kerry encouraged members of the House of Representatives to read a Wall Street Journal op-ed by 26-year-old Elizabeth O’Bagy — an analyst with the Institute for the Study of War — who asserted that concerns about extremists dominating among the Syrian rebels are unfounded.
“Contrary to many media accounts, the war in Syria is not being waged entirely, or even predominantly, by dangerous Islamists and al-Qaida die-hards,” O’Bagy wrote for the Journal on Aug. 30. “Moderate opposition groups make up the majority of actual fighting forces,” she wrote…
The Foreign Policy news site reported in June that SETF “boasts extensive contacts with rebel commanders” and “spent months lobbying Congress, the State Department and the White House for everything from small arms to anti-tank and and anti-aircraft weapons to body armor to advanced communications equipment for the rebels.”
Do Democrats vet anyone anymore?