AFGHANISTAN: In Obama's Own Words

Obama's own words tell the story.
1. "The first step must be getting off the wrong battlefield in Iraq, and taking the fight to the terrorists in Afghanistan and Pakistan." "Above all, I will send a clear message: we will not repeat the mistake of the past, when we turned our back on Afghanistan following Soviet withdrawal." Obama 8/1/07
2. “We’ve got to get the job done there (Afghanistan) 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 8/13/07
3. “But we have to understand that the situation is precarious and urgent here in Afghanistan. And I believe this has to be our central focus, the central front, on our battle against terrorism.” “This (Afghanistan) is where they can plan attacks. They have sanctuary here. They are gathering huge amounts of money as a consequence of the drug trade in the region. And so that global network is centered in this area. And I think one of the biggest mistakes we’ve made strategically after 9/11 was to fail to finish the job here, focus our attention here. We got distracted by Iraq." Obama 7/20/08
4. “Well, a ‘mission accomplished’ would be that we had stabilized Afghanistan, that the Afghan people are experiencing rising standards of living, that we have made sure that we are disabling al-Qaeda and the Taliban so that they can longer attack Afghanistan, they can no longer engage in attacks against targets of Pakistan, and they can’t target the United States or its allies.” “Losing is not an option when it comes to al-Qaeda. And it never has been." Obama 07/20/08
5. "There is no more solemn duty as President than the decision to deploy our armed forces into harm’s way. I do it today mindful that the situation in Afghanistan and Pakistan demands urgent attention and swift action. The Taliban is resurgent in Afghanistan, and al Qaeda supports the insurgency and threatens America from its safe-haven along the Pakistani border. ....the fact that we are going to responsibly drawdown our forces in Iraq allows us the flexibility to increase our presence in Afghanistan. Obama 2/17/09
6. “…if the Afghan government falls to the Taliban – or allows al Qaeda to go unchallenged – that country will again be a base for terrorists who want to kill as many of our people as they possibly can.” Obama 3/27/09
7. The insurgency in Afghanistan didn’t just happen overnight and we won’t defeat it overnight. This will not be quick, nor easy. But we must never forget: This is not a war of choice. This is a war of necessity. Those who attacked America on 9/11 are plotting to do so again. If left unchecked, the Taliban insurgency will mean an even larger safe haven from which al Qaeda would plot to kill more Americans. So this is not only a war worth fighting. This is a — this is fundamental to the defense of our people" Obama 8/17/09
NOW OBAMA IS WAVERING AS THE LEFTISTS DEMOCRATS, LIBERAL MEDIA AND A SIGNIFICANT PERCENT OF THE PUBLIC ARE OPPOSING THE "NECESSARY WAR" IN AFGHANISTAN. OBAMA DOESN'T WANT TO JEOPARDIZE HIS CHANCES FOR HIS DOMESTIC POLICIES.
8. “if supporting the Afghan national government and building capacity for their army and securing certain provinces advances that strategy” (of defeating al-Qaeda,) “then we’ll move forward. But if it doesn’t, then I’m not interested in just being in Afghanistan for the sake of being in Afghanistan.” Obama 9/22/09
NATIONAL SECURITY DECISIONS ARE BEING INFLUENCED BY DOMESTIC POLITICS AND A POPULARITY POLL. WHAT ELSE CAN WE EXCEPT FROM A THE AMERICAN IDOL TELEPROMPTER PRESIDENT WITH NO PRINCIPLES WHO LIES ON A REGULAR BASIS?