Posted on 09/18/2009 7:48:21 PM PDT by markomalley
Six months after it announced its strategy for Afghanistan, the Obama administration is sending mixed signals about its objectives there and how many troops are needed to achieve them.
The conflicting messages are drawing increasing ire from U.S. commanders in Afghanistan and frustrating military leaders, who are trying to figure out how to demonstrate that they're making progress in the 12-18 months that the administration has given them.
Adding to the frustration, according to officials in Kabul and Washington, are White House and Pentagon directives made over the last six weeks that Army Gen. Stanley McChrystal, the top U.S. military commander in Afghanistan, not submit his request for as many as 45,000 additional troops because the administration isn't ready for it.
In the last two weeks, top administration leaders have suggested that more American troops will be sent to Afghanistan, and then called that suggestion "premature." Earlier this month, Adm. Michael Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said that "time is not on our side"; on Thursday, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates urged the public "to take a deep breath."
The White House didn't respond to requests for comment. Officials willing to speak did so only on the condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to speak publicly.
In Kabul, some members of McChrystal's staff said they don't understand why Obama called Afghanistan a "war of necessity" but still hasn't given them the resources they need to turn things around quickly.
Three officers at the Pentagon and in Kabul told McClatchy Newspapers that the McChrystal they know would resign before he would stand behind a faltering policy that he thought would endanger his forces or the strategy.
(Excerpt) Read more at miamiherald.com ...
WTF?
I'm not sure that he does know. I sure hope he's hearing it from Jones and the JCS.
Hell, I doubt Obama knows the response McAuliffe gave to the Germans at Bastogne.
One thing I learned as a Butterbar Platoon Leader decades ago is you'll get less troops killed with a bad decision than no decision at all. Move, shoot, and communicate...that's the name of the game. If you ain't movin', you're a sitting duck.
Fortunately, I had great NCOs. And I was fortunate that the "light came on" after my first ARTEP (tac eval). Hey, I was no Patton, but I knew how to get 'er done, and my soldiers responded magnificently.
For example, I had the most inexperienced platoon, with 3 out of 4 squad leaders that were "acting jacks". Still, we were the only platoon in my battery to pass the biggest evaluation of the year.
Mr. President, tell your Teleprompter to lead, follow, or get the hell out of the way!
Ecmcon, a special comunications unit, set up near El Paso, to help facilitate the revolt!
Don't encourage him.
loose lips
Ecomcon, correct spelling.
Zer0 and Gates are both doing a tap dance to buy more time because Zer0 can’t make a decision. Either one is wrong for him in his eyes but our troops are paying the price with their blood each day these ROE are in effect. Mullen, Petraeus and McChrystal had better get his attention and get it fast.
I don’t think the Commanders in the field will put up with this B S for long. They’d better NOT!
Elections have consequences, and the depth and size of the current consequences are growing exponentially in an obvious negative way in all spheres of perspective. Voices of concern are being ignored,generally. Now, NATO cooperating with the Russians just after the Poland missile defense debacle...what next? There are NO rules or understandings or policies that are not on the table for surprise upset, apparently. A blitzkreig of surrender or only slightly less dangerous indecision is not the answer. WIth victory continually debated and in doubt, this is not the time to add troops with only a larger supply or withdrawal problem. Direction from the top is not clear, ambivalent, and indecisive, and therefore, the enterprise is dangerously vulnerable to the US and its Allies. We are not doing so well with loyalty to Allies at this time.
Yep.
Sorry, this will have to wait until the tax payer funded date night with his "fashion czar".
Remember the words; “Our long national nightmare is over.” —President Gerald Ford
The Mohammedan-in-Chief is still more afraid of the military than he is of us.
He’ll only pull out of Afghanistan and Iraq to install martial law here.
That is ENTIRELY possible.
Let’s just deploy the 1st and 2nd Code Pink Brigades over there to Nag the Tallies into submission. < / Sarc & Sick Humor
Here's the first example of it:
http://www.military.com/news/article/ambushed-marines-aid-call-rejected.html?col=1186032325324&ESRC=airforce-a.nl
The U.S. troops (4 killed Marines) had to wait more than an hour for attack helicopters to come to their aid and their appeal for artillery fire was rejected, with commanders citing new rules designed to avoid civilian casualties, the report said.
BULLSHIITE!!!,,,
Bomb the Poppy fields and the Poppy farmers!!!
B-52 Time!!!...
Honestly, if we make it thru these next few years without another attack, it's proof-positive that God exists.
But in the meantime, I sincerely hope that _resident jOker is developing ulcers the size of Jupiter.
Sounds eerily similar to Lib/Dem support for the Cuban expatriots at the Bay of Pigs...
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