House and Senate chairmen split on Afghanistan surge

[babylonsister]

http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/61531-house-and-senate-chairmen-split-on-afghanistan-surge


House and Senate chairmen split on Afghanistan surge
By Michael O'Brien - 10/04/09 11:17 AM ET


The chairmen of the House and Senate Armed Services committees split Sunday over whether President Barack Obama should endorse a key general's request for more troops in Afghanistan.

Rep. Ike Skelton (D-Mo.), the chairman of the House committee, said that the president should send 40,000 new troops to Afghanistan, as recommended by Gen. Stanley McChrystal, the top commander in that country.

Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.), the chairman of the Senate committee, by contrast said that he would not send more troops at this point, recommending that the president take his time in making a strategic decision for Afghanistan.

"He asked Gen. McChrystal for an assessment, and he got that assessment," Skelton said. "I'm going to back him up."

"I would not commit to more combat troops at this time," Levin said. "There's a lot of other things that need to be done to show resolve."

Both men appeared Sunday on CBS's "Face the Nation."

Levin pointed to the four months it took then-President George W. Bush to decide on a "surge" of troops in Iraq, adding that Bush even contradicted some of his generals' advice in endorsing that strategy.

"We've got to focus on is what will Sec. Gates's recommendation be to the president under these changed circumstances?" Levin said.

Skelton differed, expressing a sense that the House would support a surge for Afghanistan.

"I think the House would support the gentleman, Gen. McChrystal, who is running the show," he said.

[Oregone]

1. Any number under half a million is all so arbitrary

Its not based on what is needed to achieve the unstated goals in Afghanistan, but rather on public perception, politics, and what the military can logistically provide. There is nothing more that the US can do there with 40K troops that it cannot do now with current levels, or that is cannot do with 40K less troops. Basically, the whole war there is in limbo and no one wants to step up and piss or get off the pot (later being my preference). The military is very limited in what it could accomplish, even with doubling the troops. Once you realize this, it makes all this talk of escalation or status quo on troop levels a bit silly.