Call for an Afghan Surge Call for an Afghan Surge - WSJ.com WASHINGTON -- America's top military officer endorsed sending more U.S. troops to Afghanistan, a shift in Pentagon rhetoric that heralds a potential deepening of involvement in the Afghan war despite flagging support from the public and top Democrats in Congress. Addressing a Senate panel, Adm. Mike Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, offered no new details about how many American reinforcements will be needed in Afghanistan. But his comments mean that both Adm. Mullen and Defense Secretary Robert Gates, who spoke on the subject last week, now appear willing to order more forces to Afghanistan despite their earlier skepticism about expanding the American military presence there. Their support makes it easier for President Barack Obama to approve the plans of Gen. Stanley McChrystal -- whom the Obama administration installed as the top American commander in Kabul -- when he submits a formal request later this month for as many as 40,000 new troops, in addition to 62,000 now there. "A properly resourced counterinsurgency probably means more forces," Adm. Mullen told the Senate Armed Services Committee. "It's very clear to me that we will need more resources." Afghanistan has been wracked by unrelenting Taliban violence and growing political instability in the aftermath of last month's disputed presidential election. White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said recently that the request for reinforcements will be subject to "many weeks of evaluation and assessment" and won't simply be rubber-stamped. Still, the commander appears increasingly likely to get presidential approval for all or most of the troops he wants. Mr. Obama can send additional forces to Afghanistan without congressional approval, though politically it could be a high-risk move for the president to proceed without stronger support from his own party. Technically, Congress can withhold funds only for troops down the road, not prevent their deployment, though such a move also carries significant political risks.
it's ok man.. war is cool now that we have a new pres. It was the other guy who was the war monger/criminal. plus i'm sure those Afghanis want some good ole liberation, freedom and democracy. i like how this admin calls it a "surge" too.. i guess since the Iraqi one was so successful they may as well steal the name..
Yea, now that we have a new leader, war is cool. That last guy, only him, he was the war monger. Obama is innocent as a fawn.
The situation in Afghanistan is a sad one and one that will not turn out well. Two of the greatest empires of their day, the British in the 19th century and the Soviets in the 20th century invaded Afghanistan (the former several times). They were defeated and the NATO invasion will unfortunately meet the same fate. The saddest thing is that this defeat was not inevitable. The average Afghan hated the Taliban because their fanaticism led to the destruction of the poppy crops. The Taliban was defeated by US air power and the forces of tribal chiefs or warlords if you prefer. That should have been the end but the Afghans had merely replaced one group of religious nutcases with another. Soon the DEA arrived on the scene and continued the irradication. The war on drugs is apparently more important than the war on terror. The Taliban are not entirely stupid so they changed their policy and allowed, and protected, poppy crops as long as they get a share of the profits. We should have ignored the poppy growing. An increase in heroin supply would not mean more people would use it, merely that it would be cheaper and thus there would be less profit for criminals and less crime to support habits. And therein lies the problem. The war on drugs is not meant to end drug use but to boost the US prison industry and provide jobs for bullies, sadists and sociopaths as DEA agents and prison guards. NATO troops who are trying so hard to stabilise Afghanistan are paying the price. The law enforcement and prison lobby is so strong that no president will be able to stop the war on drugs until the US public has a change in it's mindset. Alas, Americans are too brainwashed for that.
I was quite close to joining the Marines prior to my graduating high school ('08). Recruiters are very, very good at what they do, especially if you're presently confused and without direction..
My friend got paid $2000 for signing two of his friends into the Army. I mean shit, what if they get killed? Imagine selling out your best friends lives for $2000?
i think you're one of the brainwashed americans you speak of, the u.s. didn't invade afghanistan, they have their own government. the u.s. is there working with the afghan government to irradicate the taliban, because both governments are enemies of the taliban. where did you get this DEA info?
Skoinkins, The arrival of the DEA in Afghanistan was widely reported, at least in this country, and was the featured story in one weeks McClain's Magazine several years back. The article deplored the fact that "the war on drugs trumps the war on terror" and that several of the tribal chiefs whose forces helped drive out the Taliban, were at that time sitting in US prisons charged with drug trafficing. Karzai has been kept in power by the US as one of the best of a bad lot. He is a corrupt man whose brother is a major drug trafficer, a fact also widely reported. The very existence of the DEA is a crime against humanity. The war on drugs has caused more US deaths than any conflict since WWII when you count up police deaths, people shot by police, violent deaths among drug gangs in the inner cities etc. The war on drugs, a creation of the paranoid mind of Richard Nixon, who feared that Jews, Commies and Catholics were using drugs to destroy the US. (Yes, recently released Nixon tapes contain this assertion) has simply caused drug prices to rise and make them more attractive to violent gangs and tightening of borders has led to the rise in use of manufactured drugs such as crystal meths. The evil known as the DEA will continue to grow in power like some vile fungus feeding on american society and the american taxpayer) until the sheeple fiinally grow spinal columns and demand an end to this evil.
US Sending 1,000 More Troops to Iraq Posted By Jason Ditz On September 15, 2009 @ 4:46 pm In Uncategorized | 8 Comments Though the Iraq War has long since become an after-thought amid Obama Administration claims that the “drawdown†in on track, the Pentagon is reporting today that Secretary of Defense Robert Gates has approved a request to send about 1,000 additional troops to Iraq. The latest report comes less than a week after it was revealed that the Pentagon has added thousands of additional contractors to Iraq, ostensibly to replace US troops during the drawdown. But of course the drawdown isn't actually happening. President Obama inherited a war with roughly 135,000 troops in Iraq, and today there are 131,000 and thousands of contractors. Officials have previously insisted there will be no meaningful troop level changes until at least 60 days after January's parliamentary elections. Now, over two and a half years after the “surge†in Iraq, troop levels are still above pre-surge levels and apparently will be rising in the near term. Ambassador Hill may claim the US is sticking to its timetable, but it seems that at some point such a highly touted withdrawal will have to involve the removal of some actual troops.
Robert Gates? man GW Bush's sec of defense had a similar name.. it can't be the same guy... can it? i feel like it's Bush's 3rd term or something
im so happy that you can differentiate between pictures and actually using Words .. so glad you can do that
im glad that you're glad that he's glad that he can not know that you know that i know that we can all detect sarcasm.