President Groundhog
Regular readers know this blog is no fan of the current occupant of the White House. He’s in over his head on the economy (which everyone can plainly see now) and he’s a reluctant leader at best in war.
No better example than President Obama’s Groundhog-Day like appearance today to give us an update on the "Afghanistan and Pakistan theater."
On the one hand he said "we are on track to achieve our goals" (one of which is to begin withdrawing troops in seven months).
On the other hand he said that Pakistan isn’t pulling its own weight. "Progress has not come fast enough" in eliminating al-Qaeda and Taliban sanctuaries near the Afghanistan border.
So, which is it? Are we on track, or has progress not come fast enough?
Of course, as this WashPo story points out, the overview report contains "no specifics or data to back up its conclusions."
You can find a link to the entire report in the WashPo account. The first part of the report is reprinted below. We’re going to need resolve to win this war. Problem is our commander in chief rarely can barely bring himself to use the "win" word.
Overall Assessment
"The core goal of the U.S. strategy in the Afghanistan and Pakistan theater remains to disrupt, dismantle, and eventually defeat al-Qa’ida in the region and to prevent its return to either country.
"Specific components of our strategy for Afghanistan and Pakistan are working well and there are notable operational gains. Most important, al-Qa’ida’s senior leadership in Pakistan is weaker and under more sustained pressure than at any other point since it fled Afghanistan in 2001. In Pakistan, we are laying the foundation for a strategic partnership based on mutual respect and trust, through increased dialogue, improved cooperation, and enhanced exchange and assistance programs. And in Afghanistan, the momentum achieved by the Taliban in recent years has been arrested in much of the country and reversed in some key areas, although these gains remain fragile and reversible. "
