What war? Where?

This week our president has set as few minutes to talk to his National Security staff to discuss the war in Afghanistan. Ain’t that nice of him? Last week General Stanley McCrystal, the commander of our forces in Afghanistan, told a reporter that he’d only spoken directly to the President once since June. Perhaps, if they’d spoken more often, Obama might have had a plan ready when McCrystal asked for more resources.

Since McCrystal asked for more troops, 43 more have been killed in Afghanistan while the Obama Administration diddles, according to Good Lt. at The Jawa Report.

In the Wall Street Journal, Karl Rove reminds us that George Bush faced similar circumstances in regards to Iraq;

Mr. Obama’s predecessor faced a similar situation: a war that was grinding on, pressure to withdraw troops, and conflicting advice—including from some who saw the war as unwinnable. But George W. Bush talked to generals on the ground every week or two, which gave him a window into what was happening and insights into how his commanders thought. That helped him judge their recommendations on strategy.

The difference of course is that Bush actually cared about the troops he sent in harm’s way. That doesn’t seem to be a factor in the Obama Administration;

Mr. Obama’s aloofness on the war will be a problem if the recent airing of Joe Biden’s views on Afghanistan is a tipoff that Mr. Obama will rely on his vice president’s guidance. According to reports in the New York Times and other publications, Mr. Biden supports reducing troop levels in favor of surgical attacks—mostly launched from offshore—and missile strikes against al Qaeda, especially in Pakistan.

Like I wrote yesterday, Biden and Obama prefer the Clintonian approach to warfare – make a lot of explosions so that people think they’re actually doing something and depend on under-resourced ninjas to do the close-up work – but only if they can get out of the situation without a scratch.

Biden and Obama, like Clinton think technology can get them out of a jam. Clinton used cruise missiles while Biden puts his eggs in the drone basket. Every weapon has it’s place and none is a silver bullet solution. But you can’t tell the two smartest men on the planet.

Category: Barack Obama/Joe Biden, Military issues, Terror War