So, no, I do not make this decision lightly. I make this decision because I am convinced that our security is at stake in Afghanistan and Pakistan. This is the epicenter of violent extremism practiced by al Qaeda. It is from here that we were attacked on 9/11, and it is from here that new attacks are being plotted as I speak. This is no idle danger; no hypothetical threat. In the last few months alone, we have apprehended extremists within our borders who were sent here from the border region of Afghanistan and Pakistan to commit new acts of terror. And this danger will only grow if the region slides backwards, and al Qaeda can operate with impunity. We must keep the pressure on al Qaeda, and to do that, we must increase the stability and capacity of our partners in the region.
Of course, this burden is not ours alone to bear. This is not just America’s war. Since 9/11, al Qaeda’s safe havens have been the source of attacks against London and Amman and Bali. The people and governments of both Afghanistan and Pakistan are endangered. And the stakes are even higher within a nuclear-armed Pakistan, because we know that al Qaeda and other extremists seek nuclear weapons, and we have every reason to believe that they would use them.
These facts compel us to act along with our friends and allies. Our overarching goal remains the same: to disrupt, dismantle, and defeat al Qaeda in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and to prevent its capacity to threaten America and our allies in the future.
To meet that goal, we will pursue the following objectives within Afghanistan. We must deny al Qaeda a safe haven. We must reverse the Taliban’s momentum and deny it the ability to overthrow the government. And we must strengthen the capacity of Afghanistan’s security forces and government so that they can take lead responsibility for Afghanistan’s future.
He painted himself into a corner on this one. He couldn’t go back on his comments during the campaign and following. Afghanistan is now Obama’s war. I would not be surprised if we wind up in Pakistan before we exit Afghanistan. And Iran is telling the rest of the world to go fly a kite. Take your pick, individual terrorists operating independently, cell groups and all the way up to terrorist nation states. I think the most powerful man in the world has less degrees of freedom or power than I do as a retired person, thank God.
Sounds a lot like George Bush in his reasoning
2. Paul PA wrote:
[blockquote]Sounds a lot like George Bush in his reasoning[/blockquote]
Only if he decides that the real threat is Syria and moves the troops to fight a war there.