Currently viewing the tag: "Afghanistan"
Hey liberal groups and 2010 campaigns. You know what? That base you are pandering to? They voted for more troops in Afghanistan. So did you. Do me a favor and stop the breathless pandering to the anti-war bloc of the Democratic Party and get back on the O-train. It is, after all, what you busted your ass to get elected. My how soon we forget:
I highlight this image because it’s from a resulting search for “obama campaign afghanistan”. Side by side are results from July 20, 2008 and November 25, 2009. On July 20, 2008 during the [...]
Full Story... →So the president makes a decision, the orders are given, it’s done.? Cue the cowardly pandering.
Nothing says “courage” quite like waiting for the precise moment that your “principled” position is literally an impossibility before you run out to tell us all that NOW, yes NOW, after the troops are literally on their way, NOW we must withdraw from Afghanistan, NOW.
I respect the anti-war position in the Democratic Party base. It makes me happy to be in the Democratic Party. I even respect loud disagreement with the policy after it was announced on Tuesday night. In fact, I [...]
Full Story... →I like being in a political party, the Democratic Party, so resolutely anti-war at its core, and within its base.? There is no “pro-war” Democrat.? Those people are Republicans.? Anti-war Democrats include us all.? It means when we decide to fight a war, we make sure we do it right, because we want it to end.
Anti-war pacifists do not, however, include all Democrats.? That too is a good thing.? Ask any Kosovar Albanian, who last month raised a statue to our Democratic president Bill Clinton in gratitude for saving them from genocide.? Ask Bosnian Muslims.? Ask the whole of [...]
Full Story... →Speaking to the nation from the White House Treaty Room at 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time, on Oct. 7, 2001, President George W. Bush announced the beginning of Operation Enduring Freedom against the Taliban regime and al-Qaeda in Afghanistan:
Military. America. Afghanistan. Taliban. Every.
Tonight, President Obama:
Afghanistan. Afghan. People. Security. al-Qaida.
The contrast couldn’t be any greater.
Full Story... →Tonight’s speech was nothing less than a total repudiation of the Bush doctrine by President Obama, in every way.? There is no open-ended war.? No good vs. evil.? We know when, and precisely how, the war in Afghanistan will end.?? Barack put American values ahead of American might.? And by giving this speech to a military audience, Barack made it clear that this new approach, “doctrine” if you will, comes from the top.
Invoking September 11, as weary as that has become, had to be done, but Barack did it in a much better way.? Barack invoked Article 5 of [...]
Full Story... →Lee Fisher gets his MoveOn on:
“Keeping America safe is our most sacred duty. That?s why I believe we must continue to aggressively target al-Qaeda and destroy terrorist networks around the world that threaten our nation.
“But defeating al-Qaeda does not require 30,000 additional troops be sent to Afghanistan. As those on the ground have said, stabilizing Afghanistan and preventing al-Qaeda’s return requires training tens of thousands of additional Afghan forces, building a broad-based, coalition government with the legitimacy to lead and a crackdown on corruption by the Karzai government. Placing more American soldiers in harm?s way will not move [...]
Full Story... →Join the Plundercrew as we watch and comment on President Obama’s big Afghanistan speech.? Speech prep: Speech excerpts | What to look for (Politico) | What to look for (Tim)
President Obama Afghanistan Speech
Full Story... →I’ve spent most of the day amazed by the response to my Kos diary, which spent all day at the top of the rec list, now at over 1,400 comments.? Wow.? I’m not really going to have a lot to say about the decision until I see the speech, but as Ohio’s most loud mouthed foreign policy blog dude, here’s what I’m looking for tonight.
Allies – Whatever Barack decides to do in Afghanistan will fail or succeed based largely on the involvement of NATO, the UN, Pakistan, and other allies on the ground.? I’m watching closely for any [...]
Full Story... →I couldn’t sleep at all last night, posted a diary at Kos, got so depressed I finally fell asleep, and this morning, it’s on the rec list.? It’s depressingly predictable.? But here’s the diary.
All people who run for office, every single one, somewhere in their deepest soul, believe they are destined to be president one day.? It is in their DNA to expect that the decision facing Barack Obama today not only must, but should, be theirs.? That has never applied to Barack Obama.
The cliche which describes this truth holds that you have to be a little [...]
Full Story... →I always appreciate it when a candidate opens up to questions online, which Jennifer Brunner did today at DailyKos on the subject of President Obama’s Afghanistan speech tomorrow.? I like it even better when the candidate is responsive, which Jennifer was.? When the issue is Afghanistan, and a couple of questions immediately reveal the Hobson’s choice Barack now faces, you really begin to appreciate just how thoroughly George W. Bush fucked up our country.
Bottom line, Jennifer says it’s “Time to Bring Home the Troops”, “as soon as possible”, but when asked how this would affect our pursuit [...]
Full Story... →The long awaited speech on Afghanistan strategy moving forward is tomorrow night at 8pm.? Come back then as we’ll be doing a live chat during the speech as well as just before and just after.? We’ll probably open the chat room at 7:45.
Early reports are that the speech will include a “surge” of about 30,000 U.S. troops.? This seemed very likely from the moment I heard he was giving the speech at West Point.? You don’t go to The Rock and announce withdrawal.
Jennifer Brunner has a diary up at Kos and is taking questions from readers.? [...]
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