Free Republic

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), who has spent months bashing President Trump for delaying a new Afghanistan strategy, on Monday night praised him for “taking a big step in the right direction” after his address on the path forward. “I commend President Trump for taking a big step in the right direction with the new strategy for Afghanistan,” the Senate Armed Services chairman said in a statement. “The unfortunate truth is that this strategy is long overdue, and in the interim, the Taliban have made dangerous inroads. Nevertheless, I believe the President is now moving us well beyond the prior administration's...

Sen. John McCain on Thursday unveiled a plan to increase U.S. air and ground forces in Afghanistan that would probably bring some American soldiers closer into harm’s way — a move that in effect rebukes President Trump, who has not yet decided on his preferred way forward in the war. McCain (R-Ariz.) promised to present his plan as an amendment to the annual defense authorization bill, upon his return to Washington in September.

GOP Sen. John McCain issued a statement Monday saying that he will produce a military strategy for Afghanistan in September, if President Donald Trump has no plan to offer. While McCain hasn’t yet proposed a solution, his statement indicates his intent to develop a legislative alternative in the absence of an actual plan from the Trump administration regarding U.S. interests in Afghanistan.