More U.S. troops to Afghanistan? Obama's caught in a vise

Mcclatchy Newspapers ^ | Mon Sep 21, 2009 | Steven Thomma, Jonathan S. Landay and David Lightman

[LeoWindhorse]

WASHINGTON — With the military and Republicans publicly pressuring him to send more troops to Afghanistan soon and his own administration now deeply divided about how to proceed there, the eight-year war against al Qaida and the Taliban has become an increasingly urgent policy and political dilemma for President Barack Obama .

He can escalate an unpopular and open-ended war and risk a backlash from his liberal base or refuse his commanders and risk being blamed for a military loss that could tar him and his party as weak on national security.

[LeoWindhorse]

Where do the Taliban get their munitions from ? Cut that off . Slack the ROE's . Send the JAG's back to the States . Arm UAV's with FAEs and use them liberally . No Taliban formation should be able to move , in any mountains without being in danger of being incinerated . Demand that Russia stop their criminal organizations supplying the Taliban . Ever wonder why they are so active in the north ? Use Roundup to wipe out the poppy crops This is winnable if we just start taking apart the enemy in the right manner . They cannot exist with their own huge supply lines . Cut them off . Whatever that takes . Forget the borders

[mazda77]

Agreed on all counts, but until the ROE is changed to that os a strategy to win, all the other points you mentioned will be pointless as they are all included in the win the friggin thing ROE.

[LeoWindhorse]

the JAGs are recommending the ROE’s
I’ll bet you anything the lawyers are trying to call all the shots at this point

This is how the war will be lost
McCrystal should have the courage to say that

[Son House]

There is no way to micro-manage this from the White House, give the Military all the support it needs, Democrat(Obama)

[advance_copy]

There is no way in this world that George W. Bush would hold back on what the military commanders need for victory in Afghanistan. John S. McCain would never keep them from getting what they need.

Barak H. Obama has been playing political games with the war in Afghanistan since before we ever heard of him. See, because the Afghan battle isn’t really that important. He was just using it to highlight his opposition to Iraq, for political purposes, you see.

Well, here’s a problem with that “political strategy”. There are Americans GETTING SHOT AT in Afghanistan. Do not play political games with the lives of people you count on to defend America! LBJ did, and now Obama is.

[Soul of the South]

George W. Bush pulled resources from Afghanistan to invade Iraq. One of the reasons we are in the current situation is Bush’s failure to supply the resources to Afghanistan to win when we had the momentum. The diversion of resources to Iraq allowed the enemy to regroup in Pakistan.

[advance_copy]

That’s like saying Lincoln diverted resources from Richmond to invade Vicksburg.

[LeoWindhorse]

it should be all about cutting off the Taliban supply lines

We KNOW where they are , but there are probably ROE’s protecting them .
Like the Ho Chi Minh trail , except this one probably comes out of Russia and others out of Iran .

The only reason the Mujaheddin were able to defeat the Soviets is because we gave them the supplies (paid for by the Saudis)
They don’t have that now. These days they are probably selling heroin to the Russian mob or trading for the munitions they need . This link can be crushed .
Putin owes Obama a favor , call it

[freethinker_for_freedom]

“There is no way in this world that George W. Bush would hold back on what the military commanders need for victory in Afghanistan. John S. McCain would never keep them from getting what they need.”

It’s hard to believe that Bush couldn’t do what was necessary for victory in his seven years of leading the war in Afghanistan.

[Candor7]

The Obama Junta wants US forces in Afghanistan and Iraq to be DEFEATED. He does not want a victorious army returning to interfere with his community organizing work.

He wants our military chewed up, defeated and demoralized when they retirn to the USA.

The Obama Junta will leave our troops with impossible ROE, minimal supplies, and poor leadership with lefty whacko arm chair politicians and generals running the show.

Why? So Obama can remake America into his Utopia without the interference of returning soldiers.

Its that hopey changey thing.

Obama is a traitor.

[Candor7]

What WAPO is saying:

... But Obama’s deliberative pace — he has held only one meeting of his top national security advisers to discuss McChrystal’s report so far — is a source of growing consternation within the military. “Either accept the assessment or correct it, or let’s have a discussion,” one Pentagon official said. “Will you read it and tell us what you think?” Within the military, this official said, “there is a frustration. A significant frustration. A serious frustration.”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/09/20/AR2009092002878.html

[mosaicwolf]

..."Whatever that takes . Forget the borders."

Just like the borders of Cambodia, Laos, and North Viet Nam?

[FDNYRHEROES]

Obama's caught in a vise

Sort of like between Iraq and a hard place.