The President’s New Afghanistan-Pakistan Strategy

New Obama policy – same as old Bush policy only escalated. New boss same as old. Ya-da-ya-da-ya-da.

Well here we go. Obama giving Pakistan 1.5 BILLION a year for the next 5 years. Wants to make friends with Pakistan. Sending 120,000 troops to Afghanistan, also sending civilians to Afghanistan too.
He now takes ownership of this war. Whatever happens now is on him

Everyday in every way this idiot who is bringing us to the brink of disaster never lets up! Everyday in every way we are being crushed under the weight of his incompetent ignorance. Everyday a new spend and indebtedness for America, everyday and in the dark of night this dangerous man has crapped on the constitution of the United States with his greed and his corporatism. A terrible disease he is spreading and we are dying because of him.

Everyday in every way this idiot who is bringing us to the brink of disaster never lets up! Everyday in every way we are being crushed under the weight of his incompetent ignorance. Everyday a new spend and indebtedness for America, everyday and in the dark of night this dangerous man has crapped on the constitution of the United States with his greed and his corporatism. A terrible disease he is spreading and we are dying because of him.
Posted by: We the people? | Mar 27, 2009 10:18:38 AM
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AMEN!!!! Speaking of spending: Just read on the white house website that Michelle and Jill Biden are part of his administration (their names are there). Are they getting paid?

Change We Can Believe In
Thank you for more war President Obama. You inspire me and you are doing a great job!
Yes We Can

Obama will ask our allies to contribute civilian personnel to this effort. Good. He didn’t mention though, if he would ask our allies to increase their military support with additional troops. I wonder how our allies will respond.

He now takes ownership of this war.
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Yes it is. It should have been Bush’s, but he couldn’t help himself; he had to have revenge instead of completing the legal war.
After letting the war lords free bin Laden, here merrily went skipping down the road to Iraq.

“But somehow the MSM and Obama supporters
will justify this war.”
Well, considering the person resopnsible for killing 3,000 plus Americans on American soil is still alive and among a hotbed of anti-American terrorist cells, it seems pretty frickin justified to anybody with any sensibility.

Giving aid to Pakistan is going to pay off when they look the other way while our guys quietly go into NW Pakistan and blow those a holes off the face of the earth.

Obama’s a warmonger as he made clear during the campaign, yet the mainstream media played down his comments and portrayed him as a peacemaker, distracting voters with their constant attacks on Palin and Joe the Plumber. After all, their mission was to get him elected.
Now the Obamabots are justifying his actions by saying, “Well, he did promise this.” He did, but it’s a surprise to a lot of his Kool-Aid drinkers.
Make no mistake, more soldiers and civilians will die at the hands of Obama than they ever would have at the hands of McCain.

Hope! Change! Harvard hack running a war!
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hmm….. as opposed to Cheney/Bush?
I never thought I’d see the day when the Repubs would be soft on terror. So much for Cheney saying that Obama was inviting another Terror attcak on the US.

If I recall, he went with the approval of congress, the UN and most of the free world, no?
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So? Did it make it right or the correct thing to do? Answer No. Did he do it honestly or did he mislead? Answer He misled. Did Obama Support those policies? Answer No. Did Obama support the war in Afganistan? Answer yes.

Are you jealous the President is Harvard educated………oh yea, I forgot the “Dumb One” that was led around on a leash by Rove and Cheney graduated from Yale. Well so much for high priced education, afterall, the “Dumb One” graduated 8th From the Bottom of his class. No wonder the world is in “shambles”. Comprehension level was not there.

“Did he do it honestly or did he mislead? Answer He misled. Did Obama Support those policies?”
Going merrily down the road to Iraq,as you say, is contrary to the facts.
Obama was against going to Iraq in spite of the fact he was not privy to the intelligence provided to congress. (He was not a senator at the time). His stance on not going to Iraq was based on his ideology, not on any facts.

I’m quite sure you could find them, as well as his birth certificate. There’s a law called Freedom of Information Act.

“I know quite a few harvard grads, and I would not trust one of them to run anything. ”
How many of our “best and brightest” ran Wall Street into the ground? How many in government abetted them?
The world is full of educated derelicts. – C. Coolidge

“If I recall, he went with the approval of congress, the UN and most of the free world, no?”
The UN and most of the free world? No. Congress, only after lying to them about why.

I love these arguments against education. DAMN EDUCATION! KEEP EM STUPID!
“hey, where are obama’s columbia records? still sealed? why?”
Because that’s how college transcripts are kept?

If Obama acts like Bush that’s OK, just as long as he doesn’t talk like Bush.
Newsflash:
Without the TOTUS Obama is just as incoherent as Bush.

“Make no mistake, more soldiers and civilians will die at the hands of Obama than they ever would have at the hands of McCain.”
McCain is in full support of Obama’s Afghan policy and even cautioned the administration on sending too few troops into the region. McCain and Obama have always been in pretty close agreement on Afghanistan.

Afganistan war is another example of “throwing a rock” and hiding his hand that Bush was so good at. President Obama and the American people now have to bring stability to that region that was started with ‘false pretenses” without regard of a plan and human lives.

So, you left the Democratic party because of a few comments made by somebody OTHER than Barack Obama? That makes sense.

Charles Hurt:
“FOR a guy who talks so much about wanting a new era of re sponsibility, President Obama spends an awful lot of time blaming Republicans for all the wild and reckless spending he crammed into his own budget.
“After running a campaign against the $1 trillion deficit he ‘inherited’ from President Bush and the Republicans, Obama quickly matched it. During his first 50 days in office, he and his Democratic-controlled Congress spent $1 billion an hour.
“Under Obama’s proposed budget, the overall national debt doubles in five years and triples in 10.”
Is this the Change we were Hoping for?

His stance on not going to Iraq was based on his ideology, not on any facts.
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There were no facts! All pretenses of going to war in Iraq was proved wrong. Don’t give me that crap that he was against the war because he didn’t know the facts.
Those who were for the war dfidn’t know the facts!

I never thought I’d see the day when liberals were blood-thirsty for an escalation of war in Afghanistan simply because they voted for Obama.
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More BS. It is Afganistan were we should have been from the start. Few if any ever opposed it.
You oppose it because you hate Obama period.

“Utter nonsense.”
So, you are saying that you think that the economic landscape with the 2009 budget was drafted is the same as the economic landscape now? Gotcha. Say no more.

“It is Afganistan were [sic] we should have been from the start. Few if any ever opposed it.”
Apart from the fact that we have, indeed, been there from the start, the statement is simply false. Many oppose it right this minute.
According to USA Today,
“WASHINGTON — American support for the war in Afghanistan has ebbed to a new low, as attacks on U.S. troops and their allies have hit record levels and commanders are pleading for reinforcements, a USA TODAY/Gallup Poll shows.
“In the poll taken Saturday and Sunday, 42% of respondents said the United States made ‘a mistake’ in sending military forces to Afghanistan, up from 30% in February. That’s the highest mark since the poll first asked the question in November 2001 when the U.S.-led invasion ousted the Taliban government that sheltered al-Qaeda terrorists responsible for the 9/11 terror attacks.”

Fascist Hyena,
I have news for you! Obama become president at a time that Bush had driven America bankrupt and there was no money to run the country. So you borrow money. Then you invest in alternative energy so that you don`t wait for gas prices to go up before trying to solve it.
Then you spend money to provide healthcare so America can save billions of dollars in the future.This is common sense. Don`t try to rewrite history because Americans wont buy into nonsense like that. Bush drove us into a ditch and Obama is here to solve it.

“He now proposes to borrow us out of debt…”
That is the standard right-wing mischaracterization of his proposal. What he really proposes is that we spend now to get the economy going again and then pay the debt down as soon as we can.

All of a sudden republicans believe we should cut-and-run from Afghanistan. Sorry our president wont fall for that. He has brains in his head.
However he will withdraw all troops from Iraq by 2011.

“In the poll taken Saturday and Sunday, 42% of respondents said the United States made ‘a mistake’ in sending military forces to Afghanistan, up from 30% in February. That’s the highest mark since the poll first asked the question in November 2001 when the U.S.-led invasion ousted the Taliban government that sheltered al-Qaeda terrorists responsible for the 9/11 terror attacks.”
So people were not in favor of ousting the Taliban? Huh? Something is off here. And why doesn’t that mention how many approve?

Then you invest in alternative energy so that you don`t wait for gas prices to go up before trying to solve it.
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Are cars going to start running on solar panels?

I left the Dem party when I realized Dems are no different than the GOP. Looking at Dodd and Frank and Obama and where the get their donations…..draw your own conclusions.
Obama spent 20 years with Rev Wright and is still a close personal friend. Watch what a man does, not what he says, and look at his friends. That tells you all you need to know.

“It would help if someone would translate this question into English.”
Most people don’t have any trouble sorting out one typo. I’ll spell it out for you…the “with” should be “when.”
“The difference in the landscape has been created by Mr. Obama.”
LOL. Okay. Well, argued. The collapse of the banking industry (including the complete evaporation of Bear Sterns and Lehman Brothers), the hundreds of thousands of job losses, and the housing bubble bust were clearly Obama’s creation.

“There were no facts! All pretenses of going to war in Iraq was proved wrong.’
There were no WMD discovered AFTER we invaded Iraq. If Obama knew this somehow BEFORE went in, why didn’t he tell someone?
The fact is, he didn’t know if there were or were not WMD and expressed an opinion at the time based on his ant–war ideology.
Let me ask you – If WMD had been found, would you have supported the war? And do you think Obama would have supported the war?

Maybee wrote:
Are cars going to start running on solar panels?
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Answer is no. But if we have more solar plants which actually produce energy at a lower cost, you can pluck-in your hybrid cars at home at a cheaper cost than gas.
This is called investment and it has long term benefits. Have you learned something new today?

Answer is no. But if we have more solar plants which actually produce energy at a lower cost, you can pluck-in your hybrid cars at home at a cheaper cost than gas.
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Someone is working on the electronic car already.
But have you looked around at the number of cars currently on the road? Boats? Planes? Trucks?
How long until you think those all just go away?

“Why doesn’t the media ever show the bodies of our brave soldiers coming home in body bags from Afghanistan?”
Is this your idea of clever? Because it’s neither clever, nor insightful.

Let me ask you – If WMD had been found, would you have supported the war? And do you think Obama would have supported the war?
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What the hell difference does it make? Here are the facts. No one had the facts. That is why I and many other people opposed the war. We didn’t know the facts. There was no credible threat, no credible poof of anything.
He did approve of the war in Afghanistan though. So what the is your point?
Is he war monger? no. Is he opposed to war no matter what? no. Will he use the military in a justified cause? yes.

“He didn’t buy the Administration’s pitch. For good reason.”
What was Obama’s “good reason” based on, if it wasn’t based on his anti-war ideology? Does Obama have the power to see into the future? How did he know there were no WMD ?

What does that have to do with investing in alternative energy?
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Krista was tying the price of gas to the need to invest in alternative energy.
They are separate.
Wisely investing in alternative energy is a good idea, but I also think it would be wise to acknowledge our need for gasoline- inexpensive gasoline- isn’t going away any time soon. It’s an issue that also needs to be addressed.

How did he know there were no WMD
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Your supposition is wrong . We didn’t go to war based on just WMD. There was supposed to be an Al Qaeda link, there was supposed to be an imminent threat. These two things were largely debunked long before we went to war. When you start adding things up the WMD didn’t make so much sense then. Even the UN weapons searchers were not sure they were there.
At the time bin Laden had gotten away, and suddenly he was no longer important. Many people, and I still believe, that Cheney/Bush was manufacturing and manipulating reports in order for them to exact revenge.

“Many people, and I still believe, that Cheney/Bush was manufacturing and manipulating reports in order for them to exact revenge.”
Curveball.

“Re-arguing the Iraq war will get us nowhere. Partially because it’s impossible to know how long Saddam could have been “contained”. Mostly because we did go and we can’t un-go.”
I disagree Maybee.
I think its important to examine why we got into Iraq so that we do not underreact by never responding to a threat nor overreact to a threat that is not imminent.
I think you would agree that attacking a country that was not a threat to us at the great expense of blood and treasure as well at the risk to national standing and credibility was not a good idea.

“Many people, and I still believe, that Cheney/Bush was manufacturing and manipulating reports in order for them to exact revenge.”
There has never been any proof that Bush lied or deliberately manufactured reports – that is opinion. The intelligence was faulty and there were no WMD in Iraq as thought. Had there been WMD, we would have a different story, no?

“It was up to the Bush Administration to prove that they *were* there. Get it?”
According to the intelligence provided, they were there. No? Insisting that Bush lied or fabricated intelligence is an opinion not a proven fact.

I think its important to examine why we got into Iraq so that we do not underreact by never responding to a threat nor overreact to a threat that is not imminent.
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I’m mostly talking about arguing about it on blogs and bulletin boards.
I’d have no problem if the intelligence committee or a panel wanted to look into it. I’d want to wait until people protecting their turf weren’t around, though.

According to the intelligence provided, they were there. No
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No. Only according to the reports that Cheney/Bush wanted to use. There were reports within our intelligence community that said there was none

“There has never been any proof that Bush lied or deliberately manufactured reports – that is opinion. The intelligence was faulty”
I think it was a case of interpreting the information the way you wanted to hear it. Like a researcher finding the results that he is looking for, an occurance that happens in the scientific community unfortunately.

“I think it was a case of interpreting the information the way you wanted to hear it.”
Why did Bill and Hillary Clinton, John Kerry and Al Gore all interpret it the same way Bush did, both before and after Bush was elected? And what other way could you “want” to hear your Director of Central Intelligence say “slam dunk?”

“I think you would agree that attacking a country that was not a threat to us at the great expense of blood and treasure as well at the risk to national standing and credibility was not a good idea.”
Pakistan is a sovereign country that never attacked us. Obama has ordered multiple strikes into Pakistan using drones since taking office, killing a number of civilians and enraging the Pakistani population. The strikes risk further destabilizing the region. But I’m assuming that’s OK with liberals because Obama is doing the killing instead of Bush.

And now for some cheery news from the nation’s most accurate pollster:
“Sixty percent (60%) of U.S. voters now have an unfavorable opinion of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, including 42% Very Unfavorable, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey. A growing number of her doubters seem to be fellow Democrats.”

“The whole “Bush lied” scenario is demolished simply by reading the innumerable statements made by Democrats from Clinton to Kerry to Gore concerning the undoubted presence of WMD in Iraq before Bush was even elected.”
Hardly.
And things change. Intelligence from 1996 is not necessarily applicable to 2003.

“Pakistan is a sovereign country that never attacked us. Obama has ordered multiple strikes into Pakistan using drones since taking office, killing a number of civilians and enraging the Pakistani population. The strikes risk further destabilizing the region. But I’m assuming that’s OK with liberals because Obama is doing the killing instead of Bush.”
You’re analytical skills are atrrocious. No, it’s okay not just to liberals, but to anybody with any sense, because it’s a known hotbed for terrorist cells and any action has obviously been signed off on by Zardari.

“And things change. Intelligence from 1996 is not necessarily applicable to 2003.”
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Strange, I thought Obama was in love with the way the 90′s were.
Posted by: silky

There is really not much difference now concerning the Iraq situation and that of the Iran situation. We don’t really know yet if Iraq is building nuke WMD. Just like Saddam, the regime in Iran hates the US.
So what will Obama do? Will he let them have nukes while we are in Afghanistan or will he use military force to stop them.
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Oh I see now. We must once again divert our attention from Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Sop what will Obama do while we are in Iran? Will he let the Taliban and Al Qaeda destabilize the nuclear power Pakistan?
Cheney/Bush certainly took care of Iran while invading in Iraq.
You cease to make any sense.

“Strange, I thought Obama was in love with the way the 90′s were.”
Yes, that is strange.

“Again you supposition is false, Bush was not faced with the same problem. The Iraq war was not a necessity.”
Would war with Iran be a necessity to prevent them from making nukes? Or do you think Iran, as a supporter of terrorism, should be able to have nukes? Any country, big, small or or a two bit dictatorship, can do a lot of damage with nuke weapons and materiel.
I’ll take Obama’s word that he won’t allow Iran to acquire nukes. If they acquire them, I will be very disappointed. How about you?

“If I recall, he went with the approval of congress, the UN and most of the free world, no?”
The UN and most of the free world were AGAINST our going into Iraq.

“Would war with Iran be a necessity to prevent them from making nukes?”
No. I think if they were confident that we won’t invade them like we did Iraq they won’t make them. That’s the real reason that they are willing to spend the incredible amount of money it takes to make even a few small atomic weapons.

“No. I think if they were confident that we won’t invade them like we did Iraq they won’t make them. That’s the real reason that they are willing to spend the incredible amount of money it takes to make even a few small atomic weapons.”
Well, that and that little bit about blowing Israel off the face of the map.

“The UN and most of the free world were AGAINST our going into Iraq.”
Didn’t the UN sanction the war? Well, maybe 30-40 countries supporting the effort may not be “most”, but that’s not something to nitpick about.

“Didn’t the UN sanction the war?”
Hell no.

“I don’t think that is why they are doing it. Everyone pretty much knows that no one wins a nuclear war. Their effectiveness is deterrence.”
Among sane people, it is.

“Didn’t the UN sanction the war?”
Not at all.
“Well, maybe 30-40 countries supporting the effort may not be “most”, but that’s not something to nitpick about.”
I am having Dave Chappelle flashbacks.
Bush: I got a coalition of the willing. I got 40 nations ready to roll, son!
Reporter: Like who?
Bush: Who the %#&* said that? Huh? Huh? Like who? England. Japan’s sending Playstations. Afrika Bambaataa and the Zulu Nation.

“Didn’t UN Resolution 1441 give Iraq a final opportunity to comply with its disarmament obligations that had been set out in several previous resolutions?
Wasn’t that a green light?”
Yes.
No.

Ryan C the original, you know where my name comes from, right?

“Obama will have legitimate evidence of an advanced weapons program before going in.”
I certainly hope so. Don’t we have evidence now? I’m with you – when we have the evidence, I’ll support Obama’s military action to stop them. I’ll be disappointed if he fails to do so like you, too, especially since he said he would use all options to prevent Iran from having nukes.

“I certainly hope so. Don’t we have evidence now?”
In regards to Iran?
According to the IAEA’s meeting this month.
The Director General reported that “Iran has not suspended its enrichment related activities, or its work on heavy water related projects. Nor has Iran implemented the Additional Protocol. Iran has not permitted the Agency to perform the required design information verification at the IR-40 reactor currently under construction.”

This is your final chance, Saddam, comply with this resolution 1441 or they’re coming in to disarm you. This is our last and final effort.
Resolution 1441 looks like a green light to me.
And who cares what bureaucrat Kofi Annan has to say or what his opinions are?

Then Obama will have to decide to disarm them of their nukes, as did Bush with Iraq, or let Iran them have them. And do this all the while fighting terrorists in Afghanistan like Bush did.
So what’s different here besides your opinion that Bush lied
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That is the difference Cheney/Bush lied. They predetermined they were going to war then manipulated the evidence for the war. How much clearer can I be?
To me the is one hell of a difference.
Cheney/Bush had a choice.

“That is the difference Cheney/Bush lied.”
There is no evidence Bush lied. That he lied is only an opinion.

Once upon a time there was a new US President who sent advisors and military personnel to a faraway Asian place..they were to train the local villagers to defend their democracy from bad people….he was a young President who because of his religion was not expected to reach such a high office…

support him doing that 100%. A joint effort of US and Israeli forces would get the job done.
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If it is there and he blows the facility up I am all for it.

“There is no evidence Bush lied. That he lied is only an opinion.”
See “The Dark Side” PBS Frontline special and then get back to me.

“Once upon a time there was a new US President who sent advisors and military personnel to a faraway Asian place”
New?
Eisenhower was in his 2nd term when he sent advisors to Vietnam.
“..they were to train the local villagers to defend their democracy from bad people….”
Democracy? Hardly.
More like the lesser of two evils as far as we were concerned.
Much like our support of Saddam in the 1980′s.
“he was a young President who because of his religion was not expected to reach such a high office…”
Ok a Kennedy reference coupled with the debunked right wing smear that Obama was a muslim?
Does anyone know their history?

“He was a young President who because of his religion was not expected to reach such a high office…”
Indisputably true. No Roman Catholic had ever been elected to the US presidency before, and there were serious doubts that Kennedy could overcome what was seen as an anti-Catholic prejudice in the electorate. Anyone who knows his history knows that.

Appears there must be some right-wingers at very high levels within the Obama administration:
“The Obama administration has conducted a vigorous internal debate over its new strategy for Afghanistan, expected to be unveiled by the president in a speech Friday.
“According to two U.S. government sources close to the issue, senior policymakers were divided over how comprehensive to make the strategy, involving an initial boost of 17,000 U.S. troops.
“On the one side were Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. and Deputy Secretary of State James B. Steinberg, who argued in closed-door meetings for a minimal strategy of stabilizing Afghanistan that one source described as a ‘lowest common denominator’ approach.

The original parallel was that a new president had vastly increased the scope of operations in Vietnam, just as this new president is doing in Afghanistan
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Well “Fundamental honesty” would reguire pointing out that no group from Vietnam flew four civilian airplanes into three buildings, and the earth kiulling over 3000 individuals, and would require to point out that the Government of Afganistan harbored this admitted group and refused to hand them over.
“Fundemental honesty” requires stateing that there is no parallel.

I’m really looking forward to Keith Olbermann’s and Rachel Maddow’s hawkish support of Obama’s escalating war effort. LOL.

“I disagree. Obama has always been very hawkish when it came to Afghanistan. He promised in his campaign to take it to bin Laden”
How soon the right wingers forget their feigned outrage when Obama said he would bomb Al Queda even in Pakistan.

I’m not convinced He cares about Afghanistan/the Taliban one way or another.
His entire agenda seems to be in bringing about Socialism and foreign policy matters are of little consequence to Him.