Drones: The Morality of War From the Sky

The president’s use of military drones to fight terrorism has broad support, but the policy—and its long-term effects—are not understood
Jaar, Yemen: Locals say 10 people were killed in a July 2012 U.S. drone strike but differ over whether they were members of al-QaedaPhotograph by Yuri Kozyrev/Noor/Redux Pictures

President Obama, who is putatively a civil libertarian—or, at the very least, the preferred candidate of most civil libertarians—has achieved something remarkable over the course of his term. He has led an expansive war against America’s enemies using lethal flying robots that not infrequently incinerate innocent civilians, and he’s been rewarded for it. According to a Washington Post/ABC News poll conducted earlier this year, 83 percent of Americans support Obama’s drone policy.

This is especially noteworthy because those who support the policy don’t actually know what it is. It’s discussed by the administration in only the most cursory and circumspect manner. Obama has provided the public with very little information about its revolutionary consequences.