11 Months Later and 10,000 Troops Lighter

Well, it took long enough.

This Soundtrack was Totally Recorded for Barack H. Obama

Barack H. Obama, filling his triple role as President of the United States, Commander in Chief of the US Military, and Savior of the Universe (even better than Flash!  Ah-ahhhhh!) has decreed after much deliberation, a whole lot more waiting, and a couple of quick phone calls to his general in charge of what he called a “war of necessity” that the general actually does need more troops…  just not as many as he requested.  In a self-referential ego-tastic speech, General Zero announced a surge of 30,000 troops nearly 3 months after his delayed response on Afghanistan and refusal to meet with his general until the cameras were on became international news.

What a genius!  He told us all during the election how necessary the war in Afghanistan was and how Bush (and by extension, John McCain) were so stupid and evil for focusing their attention on that eeeeeeeevil war in Iraq.  Why, when he became President, there’d be some CHANGE in Washington DC!  Things would get done!  That’s how BHO rolls!

And then he took nearly a year to make a decision on what to do in Afghanistan.

OK – to be fair, Obama decided back in February to send an extra 17,000 troops – eventually – to the region.  In fact, let’s take a step back and look at that particular decision, shall we?

As a part of the “War of Necessity”, the General in charge of operations in Afghanistan, David D. McKiernan, came to Obama, begging for 30,000 troops to fight the war to victory.  Obama’s response?  12,000 troops immediately, 5,000 troops eventually, and the dismissal of McKiernan 3 months later.

And now, he’s again granted the General in charge a fraction of the troops he needs.  OK.  Fine.  We’re still getting a surge and General McChrystal is reacting with grace and confidence.

But then, General Zero announced the bombshell.  Those troops?  It’d take a year to get them there (which is 3 months past the “we need them in a year or the war is lost” request from General McChrystal 3 months ago), and then he’ll start withdrawing troops a year later, with a full withdrawal from Afghanistan by 2012.

As opposed to, say, fighting the war to victory.

Attention Terrorists: If you’re patient, you can have Afghanistan back.  Just wait three years.  If you send in the maximum amount in campaign contributions, Mr. Obama may leave a ribbon or bow on Afghanistan on the way out.

Seriously, Barry – just go back to bowing to foreign leaders and winning awards you don’t deserve.  Leave the hard decisions to people who actually know what the hell they’re doing.

Worst.  President.  Ever.  November 2012 can’t come soon enough.

UPDATE: At least we know what side the media is on.  Meat the Press:

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Obama’s Afghan Speech is a Man Made Disaster Waiting to Happen

Most of us know that Obama’s speech tonight is about the Afghan war. We already know that 30,000 troops is being sent to Afghanistan as part of a surge. About 10,000 less than General Mcchrystal asked for, but I think its better than nothing. It apparently worked in Iraq, so the same thought is that it will work in Afghanistan. As long as we don’t read Miranda Rights to Terrorist in the Battlefield, I think on the whole that Mcchrystal’s decision is a good one. What bug’s me the most on this decision is that it took the Big O about 3 weeks to decide to do anything at all. His speech tonight is purely a political one, as his polls dip below the 50% mark, he is trying to show his wisdom about this decision and claim credit for a plan he didn’t even come up with. His lack of experience is clearly showing as the American public has lost faith in his ability to lead and his bone-headed policies that are at 1600 Pennsylvania avenue.

The main point of this article is that Obama is going to lay out some sort of exit strategy for the Afghan war. Apparently he has some plan to pull the troops out if benchmarks aren’t made by the Afghan military. Anyone remember that before the election, that the Big O was going to pull out the troops from Iraq because it was Bush’s war. Remember how their were nightly newscast on how bad Bush managed Iraq and he was basically demonized for it. And even when the Surge worked in Iraq, Bush never got credit for it. And poof, Obama gets elected and everything is just peachy in Iraq, at least in the news story line.

The fact is that war is never peachy, and war is not predictable. War is bloody hell and to have a President trying to make the Afghan war a political one is just disgusting. Anyone remember the Vietnam war and how politics effected the outcome? To have an exit strategy while the war is still being fought is a very bad idea. Sure we want the troops home, we want peace in Iraq and Afghanistan, but to set up a supposed date to bring the troops home, the enemy is going to be content to stay in their well stocked caves to wait the US Military out. And then we will once again have an unstable Afghanistan that is one country away from obtaining a nuclear weapon.

I realize that Afghanistan is the worst place in the world to possibly have a war. From the Romans to the Russians, many countries have tried and failed at taking the country. It’s a killing field and what we definitely don’t need is Obama dictating policy to the troops. Let the Generals and MIlitary do what they do best and leave politics out of the equation. Sadly I fear that tonight, it will not be the case.

What I would love to see is for THE PRESIDENT, not a politician, come out and say that we are going to Afghanistan to kick some ass and take names. That we are going to hunt every terrorist down and send them straight to Allah. That there will be no civilian trials for Terrorist. There will be no compromise with the Taliban. There will be no micromanagement of a foreign war. That as a country, we need to pull together and support our troops.

Of course this is not what is going to happen. How I miss President Reagan.

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