WASHINGTON — President Obama's decision Wednesday to try to block the court-ordered release of photographs depicting alleged abuse of detainees by U.S. soldiers sets him on a confrontational course with his liberal base. But it is a showdown he is willing to risk -- and may even view as politically necessary.
The president's reversal comes just three weeks after his administration agreed to release the images. The move enraged advocacy groups, which swiftly accused Obama of violating his promises of openness and of parroting justifications for secrecy that had been argued by the Bush administration and rejected by courts.
But in following the advice of military leaders, who had expressed fears of a backlash in the Middle East if the pictures were released, Obama now can tell critics on the right that he did his best to protect the nation's troops, even if the courts eventually force the disclosure.
Obama has been facing intense criticism from former Vice President Dick Cheney and other conservatives, who have argued that the new administration's efforts to roll back Bush-era interrogation policies have made the country less safe.
The praise for Obama that came Wednesday from Republicans such as House Minority Leader John A. Boehner of Ohio and Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina can only help undercut those arguments.
"He's realized the difference between being a candidate and being commander in chief," said Graham, who wrote to Obama last week asking him not to release the photos.
Even if the administration loses its bid in court and the photos are released, Graham added, "it's good for the troops to know their commander in chief went to bat for them."
The release would make public for the first time photos obtained in military investigations at facilities other than the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq. Forty-four photos that the American Civil Liberties Union was seeking in a court case, plus a "substantial number" of other images, were to be released by May 28 under an agreement reached with the administration last month.
The photos, examined by Air Force and Army criminal investigators, reportedly are less disturbing than the Abu Ghraib images released in 2004 that stoked anti-American sentiment around the world. And after personally reviewing them, Obama on Wednesday described them as "not particularly sensational."
