The Presidential Planner
EmailABC News' Sunlen Miller reports: President Obama will hold his sixth meeting on Afghanistan and Pakistan with his national security team this morning. Those expected to attend are: Vice President Biden (via videoconference from Ohio), Secretary of State Clinton, Secretary of Defense Gates, General James Jones, National Security Advisor, Tom Donilon, Deputy National Security Advisor, John Brennan, Assistant to the President for Counterterrorism and Homeland Security and Rahm Emanuel, White House Chief of Staff.
In the afternoon the president will travel to the Sunshine State for two days.
First he will stop in Jacksonville, Fla. and meet with servicemen and women at the Naval Air Station Jacksonville. The president will make a brief speech and then meet with personnel from the Navy and Marine Corps.
While the president's decision is still outstanding on a strategy forward in Afghanistan, the White House says not to "over-read" anything into the remarks that the president will deliver today, other than "he wants to thank the brave men and women of the United States Armed Forces for the hard and courageous work that they do."
Later, the president will travel to Miami to again put on his fundraising hat. This is the ninth fundraiser the president will have in a week for Democrats. The president will deliver remarks at a fundraising reception and a fundraiser dinner at the Fountainbleau Hotel to benefit the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.
-Sunlen Miller
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More dithering while U.S. soldiers die.
Posted by: FLD | October 26, 2009, 8:45 am 8:45 am
The Commander in Chief has never been the commander of anything.
Posted by: Johnny L | October 26, 2009, 9:10 am 9:10 am
More dithering while U.S. soldiers die.
FLD | Oct 26, 2009 8:45:37 AM
Like the seven years of dithering under the Republicans while Bin Laden escaped and our soldier died? Obama has already DOUBLED the number of troops in Afghanistan compared to before he took office.
Unlike Republicans, Obama seems of the opinion that if nation building is a hopeless cause, it’s best to leave now rather and send in the Airforce as needed rather than send our kids to die in that wretched ‘country’ for another 7 years of American troops dying. And with the facts on the ground what they are (no new troops would start arriving until the winter, when hostilities literally cease due to weather), the truth is in reality his taking this time costs nothing.
Posted by: jhw539 | October 26, 2009, 9:36 am 9:36 am
===it’s best to leave now rather and send in the Airforce as needed===
The Air Force was used while Bush was president. And Obama said…
“We’ve got to get the job done there and that requires us to have enough troops so that we’re not just air-raiding villages and killing civilians, which is causing enormous problems there,” Obama said.”
…that was then. This is now.
Posted by: Axey | October 26, 2009, 9:43 am 9:43 am
“The war in Afghanistan is over”
–Nancy Pelosi, April 2005
This is the kind of factual analysis the left assiduously ignores when it modifies history by accusing Bush of dithering for seven years. If he was dithering, why didn’t the Speaker of the House say so?
The NATO ministers have endorsed McChrystal’s plan. What’s holding Obama up?
(Try to imagine Churchill constantly blaming his predecessor while rallying his nation in time of war.)
Posted by: Fascist Hyena | October 26, 2009, 9:59 am 9:59 am
And 14 Americans die in Afghanistan while we wait for this geopolitical genius to decide what to do, desoite claiming during the campaign that he would make Afghanistan the focus of the war on terror.Despite the claims about the last seven years, the situation in Afghanistan has really gone to pot since Mr. Obama took office.Those of us with friends and family members in the Service see what is going on,which is gross indecisiveness.Talk to people who are returning from Afghanistan( if you know any): it is turning into a cluster—-.And the war does not stop in winter-I can assure you of that.
Posted by: Nephron | October 26, 2009, 9:59 am 9:59 am
Obama seems of the opinion that if nation building is a hopeless cause, it’s best to leave now rather and send in the Airforce as needed
=======
The word “seems” is the problem with this situation.
Also, American casualties are going up as you argue on behalf of Obama being unwilling to see more of our troops die.
Posted by: MayBee | October 26, 2009, 10:05 am 10:05 am
Does anyone else find all this fund raising just really offensive when we have so many huge problems facing this country?
Posted by: wow | October 26, 2009, 1:22 pm 1:22 pm
Also, American casualties are going up as you argue on behalf of Obama being unwilling to see more of our troops die.
MayBee | Oct 26, 2009 10:05:11 AM
Obama approved the dispatch of 13,000 troops this month to support our troops. He’s already doubled the number of troops we have in Afghanistan. It is reasonable and prudent that he waits for all the info to be before almost doubling it again.
Going from the gut and staying the course looks great on TV (Obama’s polls would get a nice bump if he waved the flag, sent off more troops, and shook some Republican hands about it), but it is a stupid long term plan.
Posted by: jhw539 | October 26, 2009, 1:46 pm 1:46 pm
Does anyone else find all this fund raising just really offensive when we have so many huge problems facing this country?
wow | Oct 26, 2009 1:22:09 PM
No moreso than the $0.8 TRILLION Bush hauled in. It’s distasteful, but Presidents are the leader of their party and permitted political freedom to act as such in their off hours.
Posted by: jhw539 | October 26, 2009, 1:47 pm 1:47 pm
Obama approved the dispatch of 13,000 troops this month to support our troops. He’s already doubled the number of troops we have in Afghanistan. It is reasonable and prudent that he waits for all the info to be before almost doubling it again.
==========
“Waits for all the info.”
As if there is some magic amount of info to be gleaned before he makes a decision.
He is the one driving the decision making process, the number of resources he directs toward it, the time he puts into it, and the energy he uses publicly discussing our two wars.
You will note I am not saying he needs to say “stay the course”. I’m saying the choice, timing, and emphasis are his and his alone.
Compare this to his push for health care reform- something which has no actual immediacy. Obama is dragging his feet and keeping quiet. For his own purposes.
Posted by: MayBee | October 26, 2009, 2:40 pm 2:40 pm
“Obama approved the dispatch of 13,000 troops this month to support our troops. He’s already doubled the number of troops we have in Afghanistan. It is reasonable and prudent that he waits for all the info to be before almost doubling it again.”
___________________________________
If only the Bush administration had applied the same level of prudence to the ‘weapons of mass destruction’ in Iraq.
As the hideous explosions yesterday continued to prove, the U.S.A. totally destabilized that country.
Posted by: julieterra | October 26, 2009, 3:45 pm 3:45 pm