30 September 2009
General MeChrystal’s Request Goes Unaddressed
Posted by Terrie Soberg under: What's News .
General Stanley McChrystal sent a war assessment to the Secretary of Defense on August 30, 2009. The assessment included a request for a new strategy and more U.S. troops in order to score a victory in Afghanistan. Now, one month later, the report has not been addressed and we have lost 43 members of the armed forces in that time.
When General McChrystal appeared on 60 Minutes on Sunday, he said that he has only talked to Obama one time during that last 70 days.
Here is an excerpt from an article on CBSNews.com:
In his confidential report, which was leaked to the Washington Post on Sept. 21, Gen. McChrystal warned that defeating the insurgents will not be possible if the United States fails to “gain the initiative and reverse insurgent momentum” over the next 12 months.
McChrystal reportedly has prepared a separate request for tens of thousands of additional U.S. troops to be sent to the 68,000 already in Afghanistan.
Since Sept. 21, when the Washington Post leaked information from McChrystal’s confidential report, the White House has been on the defensive over its Afghanistan strategy.
As CNSNews.com reported on Tuesday, Barack Obama campaigned on a promise to reinforce U.S. troops in Afghanistan, which he described as war we “have to win.”
As president – in March 2009 – Obama announced a “comprehensive new strategy” for Afghanistan: “I want the American people to understand that we have a clear and focused goal to disrupt, dismantle, and defeat Al Qaeda in Pakistan and Afghanistan and to prevent their return to either country in the future,” he said. (See story)
But last week, Obama said he was not willing to send troops “beyond what we already have” until he was sure the United States is employing the right strategy in the region.
It seems to me that instead of gallavanting across the world, his more pressing concern should be to figure out what to do to keep our troops safe and win the war. I’m just sayin’.
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