The Situation Room by George Stephanopoulos

Author:George Stephanopoulos [George Stephanopoulos and Lisa Dickey]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Published: 2024-05-15T00:00:00+00:00

“A bit of theater”: the pivotal meeting about Bosnia in Tony Lake’s office. (L–R: President Clinton, Warren Christopher, Tony Lake, William Perry, General John Shalikashvili) | Courtesy William J. Clinton Presidential Library

That drop-by at Lake’s office marked a turning point in the discussions. Now, the principals had no choice but to recognize that the president wanted a change in strategy. This was reinforced by their knowledge that American troops would have to go in if the U.N. mission failed. “We needed a new paradigm,” says Vershbow. “We couldn’t just drift any longer. And so at least their people started working with us, though they still opposed decisive action.”

Clinton knew he couldn’t let the conflict in Bosnia become a weight around his neck in the 1996 campaign, which was just around the corner. “In the Sit Room, we all knew it was there,” recalls David Scheffer. “The elephant in the room.” At that time, Clinton also confided in me. We need “to bust our rear to get a settlement in the next couple of months,” he said. “Explore all alternatives, roll every die.” Otherwise, he feared it might be “dropped in during the middle of the campaign.” He’d made his decision, but it would take another tragedy halfway around the world to put it into action.

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