Patterico's Pontifications

12/13/2009

Obama on the Afghan Exit Strategy

Filed under: International,Obama — DRJ @ 8:10 pm



[Guest post by DRJ]

In a preview yesterday of a 60 Minutes interview of President Obama scheduled to air tonight, Jake Tapper said Obama described the territory between Afghanistan and Pakistan as the “epicenter of the violent extremism directed against the West” but nevertheless insisted on a July 2011 exit deadline for Afghanistan. Why? Because we don’t need an American protectorate in Afghanistan:

“The president said, “the answer is: in the absence of a deadline the message we are sending to the Afghans is ‘It’s business as usual, this is an open-ended commitment.’ And very frankly there are, I think, elements in Afghanistan who would be perfectly satisfied to make Afghanistan a permanent protectorate of the United States. In which they carry no burden. Which we’re paying for — a military in Afghanistan that preserves their security and their prerogatives. That’s not what the American people signed off for when they went into Afghanistan in 2001. They signed up to go after al Qaeda.”

The United States has active duty military personnel in over 130 countries so it’s disingenuous of Obama to suggest that having troops in Afghanistan makes it our protectorate. But Obama specializes in making strawman arguments like this, so this isn’t news.

However, it is backwards reasoning. If the United States is going to provide long-term military protection to any nation in the world, providing it to one of the two nations at the “epicenter of the violent extremism” should be high on America’s list.

— DRJ

15 Responses to “Obama on the Afghan Exit Strategy”

  1. I doubt the Mickey Mouse CIC knows we have troops in so many countries and have had them there for years. He thinks they’re all lazing around in the 57 states.

    Scrapiron (4e0dda)

  2. What progress we’ve made!

    “We had to burn the village to save it” has morphed into “we have to run away from the country to win the war there.”

    Now that’s some nuance.

    chaos (9c54c6)

  3. Hey, Germany is a permanent protectorate of the United States. In fact, they just refused to send more troops to Afghanistan. Why ? Because they don’t want to. They know the US will do the job for them.

    Neo (7830e6)

  4. If anyone would like more detail, they could read “Imperial Grunts” by Robert Kaplan.

    Mike K (2cf494)

  5. That “130 countries” number is highly deceptive, because it counts embassy guards and military attaches at our embassies. In a lot of the countries on that list, our total military strength is less than 20 men.

    Steven Den Beste (99cfa1)

  6. I’ve lived life so long that I’m starting to see history repeat itself. I didn’t think I was so old.

    I didn’t watch the “60 Minutes” interview. At this point, what is the point? The President says the same old things in the same old ways, and he’s not been in office a year.

    Ag80 (6d4e1f)

  7. Redeployment to VICTORY!!!!!

    Let’s revisit the Murtha Okinawa strategery.

    daleyrocks (718861)

  8. Redeployment to VICTORY!!!!!

    Let’s revisit the Murtha Okinawa strategery.

    Maybe Victory is one of those 7 extra states the rest of us didn’t know anything about until Obama revealed their existence.

    chaos (9c54c6)

  9. One more thing that I should have said in my previous post. Good night and adieu.

    [I hope you don’t really mean adieu or if you do, that you change your mind someday. — DRJ]

    Ag80 (6d4e1f)

  10. Good point, Steven Den Beste. Of course, I guess it depends on who those 20 men are. At one time, 20 Texans were enough to handle almost anything:

    The law authorized for Ranger companies of a maximum of 20 men each. The career of Co. B. Capt. W.J. McDonald, and a book written about him, added much to the Ranger legend, including two of its most famous sayings.

    The often cited “One Riot, One Ranger” appears to be based on several statements attributed to Capt. McDonald by Albert Bigelow Paine in his classic book, Captain Bill McDonald: Texas Ranger. When sent to Dallas to prevent a scheduled prizefight, McDonald supposedly was greeted at the train station by the city’s anxious mayor, who asked: “Where are the others?”

    To that McDonald is said to have replied, “Hell! ain’t I enough? There’s only one prize-fight!”

    And on the title page of Paine’s 1909 book on McDonald are 19 words labeled as Capt. McDonald’s creed: “No man in the wrong can stand up against a fellow that’s in the right and keeps on a-comin’.” Those words have evolved into the Ranger creed.”

    DRJ (84a0c3)

  11. “epicenter of the violent extremism directed against the West”

    Sounds like a good place for the first drop of a 7 drop cluster, er however may of them one packs. The drones can handle the 12 that think they got out.

    There will be peace in region for over 1000 years!

    Note to Pakistan; Thanks for the coordinates, solves one for you too eh?

    TC can simplify anything. 🙂

    TC (0b9ca4)

  12. Obama may really not know about the Special Forces all over the world. That’s why I suggested Imperial Grunts. Apropos of the Texas Ranger story, our military mission to Mongolia, one of the most pro-American countries on earth, consisted of one LT Colonel when Kaplan wrote the book five years ago. He spoke the language and traveled all over the country assisting the army training.

    Mike K (2cf494)

  13. Well said, DRJ. Well said.

    SPQR (26be8b)

  14. …there are, I think, elements in Afghanistan who would be perfectly satisfied to make Afghanistan a permanent protectorate of the United States. In which they carry no burden. Which we’re paying for — a military in Afghanistan that preserves their security and their prerogatives.

    Say what you will about his strategy or lack thereof, but this is a true statement and we didn’t sign up for that. Deadlines are stupid when they are public, but we need to light a fire under these goatherds.

    spongeworthy (c2e8fe)

  15. No, spongeworthy, DRJ addressed that strawman already.

    SPQR (26be8b)


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