Obama Escalates Afghanistan Quagmire

[FrankRep]

Obama Escalates Afghanistan Quagmire


Patrick Krey | The New American
20 July 2009


It could be argued that the single biggest contributor to President Barack Obama’s election victory was voter dissatisfaction with former President Bush’s neoconservative warmongering foreign policy (which was embraced by Republican presidential candidate John McCain). Ironically, since taking office, Obama has turned out to be eerily similar in the warmongering department.

One of Obama’s first foreign policy decisions as the commander-in-chief was to copy Bush’s Iraq troop “surge” with a surge of his own in Afghanistan. The U.S. troop presence has drastically increased from 32,000 at the start of 2009 to about 57,000 presently with an anticipated cap around the 68,000 mark (which would more than double the U.S. commitment to the region). Like the salesman on a late-night infomercial typically proclaims, “But wait — there’s more!” Defense Secretary Robert Gates announced that the number of boots on the ground could climb even beyond the 68,000 number. In a question and answer session at Fort Drum, Gates said that what U.S. General Stanley McChrystal, who was recently appointed as the new commander of NATO, reports back to him could influence the decision to send even more troops to war. McChrystal is preparing a classified report for the Defense Secretary on Afghanistan according to CNN.

McChrystal is expected to complete a classified report for Gates by the end of this month, assessing where the war stands, and what needs to be done. He will tell Gates whether he needs more U.S. troops to fight the escalating conflict, according to a senior U.S. military official.… The review is also expected to recommend that the number of Afghan troops be increased beyond the goal of 134,000, other military sources said.

McChrystal is already seeking to increase troop levels there by pleading with the British to send more troops. McChrystal also stated that the conflict shows no sign of coming to a near halt. “It will go on until we achieve the progress we want to achieve…. It won't be short.” The British casualties in Afghanistan recently just climbed above the number of those who died in the Iraq conflict. Things continue to deteriorate in the region where attacks are up 70 percent over last year. Unlike in America where the marital woes of the stars of Jon & Kate Plus Eight dominate the headlines, in the U.K., the rising death toll and grim analysis of prospects for success have generated controversy and debate over British participation in the war. Such a dialogue has alarmed the Obama administration, which fears the same might happen in the United States, according to the Financial Times.

Britain's increasingly heated debate about its role in Afghanistan has sparked concern in Washington about the sustainability of the military strategy and the US public's own willingness to commit troops for the long term, senior officials and analysts say.… A senior US official told the Financial Times that there was "some level of anxiety" within Barack Obama's administration about the UK debate. "It's hard to see our most capable partner struggling in this debate…. If we are going to have to backfill European countries that decide to leave, could we sustain that with US public opinion? That's an open question."

Unfortunately for our brave men and women in the U.S. armed forces, the current administration seems more concerned with public opinion polls than preventing U.S. casualties in an unnecessary and unconstitutional nation building project. The Associated Press reports that Obama’s surge is already proving very deadly.

July is shaping up as the deadliest month of the Afghan war for U.S.-led international forces, with the number killed already matching the highest full-month toll of the nearly eight-year conflict…. As of Wednesday, at least 46 international troops, including 24 Americans, had been killed in Afghanistan this month…. That matches the tolls for the two previous deadliest months — June and August of 2008. The rate of deaths in July — about three a day — is approaching some of the highest levels of the Iraq war. [Emphasis added.]

One has to wonder how long it will take the American public to wake up from their mainstream media-induced slumber to recognize that the man sold to them as a peace candidate is turning out to be just as bad of a warmonger, if not worse, than his much-maligned predecessor.


SOURCE:
http://www.thenewamerican.com/index....gn-policy/1450

[dannno]

Well you can't say he lied during his campaign. At least about this issue.

I remember having a lot of long heated debates with Obama supporters about this. They said he was just pandering and when he gets elected he'll get us out of the wars. Then I would ask, "WHY would he pander when the majority of the country is against these wars??"

[Young Paleocon]

We'll probably be looking at 320-350 coalition fatalities this year along with a couple thousand wounded. This past winter was the most deadly yet seen in Afghanistan with IED's wreaking havoc in the normally docile months. With this U.S. offensive we will see how effective the Taliban are at remaining mobile and still being able to place bombs and find materials whilst also maintaining funding.

[Liberty Star]

Well you can't say he lied during his campaign. At least about this issue.

I remember having a lot of long heated debates with Obama supporters about this. They said he was just pandering and when he gets elected he'll get us out of the wars. Then I would ask, "WHY would he pander when the majority of the country is against these wars??"

Many dems have this complex that they don't want to be seen "weak on national security" next to the war all the way drum beat crowd of GOP and some may be bent on trying to show that they can kill just as many in the "right war" in Afghanistan as Bush/Cheney policies did in the "wrong war" in Iraq. It should also be noted that most of these dems had voted for Bush's Iraq war, they just seem to lack integrity to admit and swing with the winds of public opinion.

That said, the way things are progressing in Afganistan and at home and how he is screwing up things, Obama is showing the potential to end up being the most disliked President in US history at the end of a perfect storm, a feat that would have seemed hard to accomplish just a year ago.

This is all Obama's policies in action and he owns this war now:

July becomes deadliest month for US in Afghanistan

By JASON STRAZIUSO, Associated Press Writer Jason Straziuso, Associated Press Writer – 16 mins ago

KABUL – Four Americans were killed Monday when a roadside bomb exploded in eastern Afghanistan, NATO said, making July the deadliest month for U.S. troops in this war.

A NATO statement did not give nationalities, but U.S. spokesman Lt. Robert Carr confirmed that all four were Americans. The deaths bring to 55 the number of international service members killed in July, also the deadliest month for NATO forces.

At least 30 U.S. troops have died this month — two more than the toll for June 2008, which had been the deadliest month for the American force in Afghanistan.

Meanwhile, a British fighter jet crashed at NATO's largest base in southern Afghanistan on Monday, the second aircraft to go down there in two days.

Fighter jet crashes in Afghanistan

Crash is the fourth aircraft wreck in three days

July 20, 2009

From Ivan Watson
CNN

KABUL, Afghanistan (CNN) -- A fighter jet crashed in southern Afghanistan on Monday, in the fourth wreck in three days, authorities said.

Authorities were looking into why the plane went down during takeoff from Kandahar airfield Monday morning, but the role of insurgents had been ruled out, said Lt. Col. Paul Kolken, the spokesman at the airfield.

The crew ejected safely, and was being treated, Kolken said. Five hours after the crash, the wreckage of the plane was still on fire.

Military officials did not identify the type of jet that crashed, nor did they release the nationality of the crew. Weather conditions were fair at the time of the incident, Kolken said.

On Saturday, a U.S. fighter jet crashed in eastern Afghanistan, killing its crew of two.

In addition, a civilian helicopter went down on takeoff from Kandahar airfield on Sunday, killing 16 people, NATO said. Watch details of the helicopter crash »

And a military helicopter made a hard landing elsewhere on Sunday, apparently injuring at least some of those on board, NATO said.

None of the aircraft were shot down, said the International Security Assistance Force -- NATO's mission in Afghanistan. It did not announce the cause of any of the crashes.

There were at least two earlier crashes this month.

At least five people were killed when a helicopter went down in southern Afghanistan's Helmand province Tuesday, a local government official said.

And on July 6, two Canadian air crew members and a British soldier were killed when a helicopter crashed during takeoff in Zabul province, the Canadian and British defense ministries said.

Copter crash kills 16 in Afghanistan, NATO says

Mon July 20, 2009

KABUL, Afghanistan (CNN) -- A helicopter crashed during takeoff from Kandahar airfield in southern Afghanistan on Sunday, killing 16 people, NATO said.

http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/as...ter.jet.crash/

http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/asiapc...an.helicopter/

http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/as...tan.jet.crash/