Sen. Barack Obama called the war in Iraq a “dangerous distraction” Tuesday and said more emphasis must be placed on the battle in Afghanistan.
Sen. Barack Obama said he would take the country in a new direction, should he become president.
“As should have been apparent to President Bush and Sen. [John] McCain, the central front in the war on terror is not Iraq, and it never was,” Obama said in what his campaign called a major policy address on Iraq, Afghanistan and national security.
Obama said that part of his new strategy will be “taking the fight to al Qaeda in Afghanistan and Pakistan.”
Shortly after Obama’s speech, McCain attacked the Illinois senator’s opposition to the surge policy in Iraq and highlighted his own proposal for victory in Afghanistan. Read what McCain says about Obama’s plan
My plan for victory in Afghanistan, which is mine . . .
Ex Brother-in-Law of Zen of Comment Spam:
UPDATE: Karl adds–
Comment by Karl on 7/15 @ 6:37 pm # |Edit This
Dan,
Glad you got to this; saves me some time.
1. Iraq was a distraction  for al Qaeda
2. If it’s a distraction, then why is Obama going there? He’s easily distracted.
Which is to say, he’s a warmonger who cannot conceive of a solution based on anything other than raw, bloody revenge.
Just like the rest of the leftoids. Nothing to see here, folks. Move
alongon.Regards,
Ric
The audacity of this man amazes me. How stupid does he think we are? This man is an empty suit, totally bereft of any core principle. He will say what the polls tell him to say. I’m not a fan of McCain, but at least I know where he stands
Much as I hate to give the O! points on anything, he’s right to point out that Afghanistan needs some attention, and equally right to put Pakistan into the mix. Because the problem with Afghanistan is Pakistan.
‘Course, whether he’ll actually DO any of this is another matter. Can’t say I’m inclined to give him much trust.
Smirky McChimp- click the link to link to read McCain’s response. It’s got the meat your looking for.
I think this is the perfect opportunity for McCain to call a press conference and give the “Dicks, Pussies & Assholes” speech.
There are alot of things labeled as a distraction now according to the Obama campaign, but I never figured an entire war our country is in would be one of them.
That whole campaigning and voting thing people are so focused on? Another distraction.
I did read it, and it sounds like he knows the problem is there. Me, I’m not sure if there is a better solution than what Gingrich said on FoxNews last night: tell the Paks we’re gonna start hot-pursuiting across the border, and then start doing it. But wielding the carrot as well could also work: I can’t imagine that Al Qaeda’s standard operating procedure in areas it controls is making it any more popular among the Pushtuns in the NWFP than it did in the Sunni Triangle. But hey, long as he’s prepared to work at it, I gots no beef.
Dan,
Glad you got to this; saves me some time.
1. Iraq was a distraction — for al Qaeda
http://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htwin/articles/20080627.aspx
2. If it’s a distraction, then why is Obama going there? He’s easily distracted.
3. Check the queue — I have something ready (probably for tomorrow) that I would prefer you avoid.
I hear ya Smirky. Hey, why don’t we just get the Pakis to grant Wazirastan sovereignty? Then it’s no longer Pakistan. We can bomb the ever lovin’ shit out of it, “conquer” it, and then hand it right back to the Pakis.
Done and done.
The only thing that is never a distraction in this campaign is skin color.
I don’t think the distraction argument holds up anymore. There may and may not)have once been valid arguments for that, but to just leave now would create such a bigger mess.
But I agree we need to focus more on Afghanistan and Pakistan. Not sure either McCain or Obama has a good plan.
But I haven’t posted or read much here so I might be missing something. And I’m disgusted with everything.
Plus I’m drinking!
“The only thing that is never a distraction in this campaign is skin color.”
That’s not true. They’ve scheduled the Blue Man Group for Denver.
And any surge of troops into Afghanistan will require logistic support through the ports of Pakistan, and over the roads and rails of Pakistan, and over the airspace of Pakistan.
Thank you for displaying your thundering ignorance, Senator Obama. We are all dumber due to hearing you.
Smirky? Ever open an atlas and try to figure out how you get from here (the USA) to there (Afghanistan)? Ever study a globe of the earth?
No, I didn’t think so.
Barack seems to be intent on getting a lot of American fighting men killed in the Hindu Kush in order to demonstrate that he’s for sure one tough hombre. While willing to salute smartly and carry out lawful orders, somehow I’ve never gotten the impression the DoD is motivated by any great urge to pour gobs of men and machines into that particular maw. Training up Afghans seems to be the wiser plan for the near term. I hope Gen. Petraeus and his staff can formulate a strategy and persuade Sen. Obama to adopt it and stick to it in the unlikely event Obama is elected Pres. Hmmm, yes, but won’t Obama oust Petraeus from Centcom at the first opportunity and install his own man? I’d assume he would.
As to the Paks, remember Mikey, Obama’s personal specialty is offending allies of every stripe. They’ll get over it once he fills ’em with his ‘changey and hopey’ dreams.
You’re right, Sdferr. Charm and a good speech can bend the laws of nature and geography to the Obamessiah’s will.
I was wrong to doubt, forgive me my sin.
lunarpuff! You haven’t been here in like a year!
Wasn’t Baracky the guy who thought they spoke Arabic in Afghanistan?
That wasn’t the Barack he knew, ‘feets. No, no, he was tired, lacking sleep he said. No wait, an aide filled out that form. He was distracted by someone talking in his ear.
Well, hullo MayBee. It’s nice to see some familiar faces. I haven’t been around.
I’m all bitter and disillusioned and ghetto and shit now!
But this place used to just crack me up! I’m lookin’ for some of that…
lamont-
That’s not true. They’ve scheduled the Blue Man Group for Denver.
Us Libertarians already tried that in 2004- did’t work!
We like us some lunarpuff. Even disillusion lunarpuff.
Aww Karl… Glad to see you are still posting.
I like the ‘all ghetto and shit’ part best. And I think I’m doing well.
I’m planning how to save more (??) because the Smashing Pumpkins are planning a reunion tour. No way in hell can I miss that.
Honestly, I can’t think of one more thing I can give up, but I’ll have one of those tickets. I can live on potatoes for a while.
And for the judgmental folks out there who are wondering about my internet access (I’m so sorry but I’m so defensive sometimes I hate myself)have you tried looking for a job w/o internet access? And I
don’t have air or heat or cable or a microwave so I conserve in other areas ok?
But sorry to be so nasty, I do feel so defensive for being jobless and it just comes out at the most unexpected times.
How on earth do people get through this?
Five things: 1) Everybody needs to acknowledge that going in hot pursuit into Pakistan is going to cost a lot of lives. We need to brace for that. I have absolutely NO doubts that, despite their calls for such an action today, Progressives will criticize it tomorrow.
2) We also need to remember that the only feasible way into Afghanistan is Pakistan. Maybe if we showed the stubborn bastards who run China a picture of Barack Obama’s face they might see the light and allow us to fly bombers and spy planes over their territory. But I just don’t see that happening. Cynic, me. I guess I’m low on my dose of Inspirational Hope and Change. But what that means is that WE have to be very delicate in Pakistan. It’s not just that they have nukes. It’s that they have a thin, thin veneer holding that crazy fucking place together.
3) If we abandon Iraq, much of that thin veneer in the body of Musharaf is going to read the writing on the wall. He’s going to say, “well, since the Americans aren’t serious about holding the line, why should I be?” And faster than you can say, “I believe in hope and change for the future dreams of our children’s unicorns,” he’ll be drawing from his Swiss Bank Account to get a nice little villa in the South of France. Then, we’re fucked. Because not only won’t we be able to get into Afghanistan without going full on war with Pakistan and costing ungodly amounts of human life, but they’ll have errant nukes.
4) We shouldn’t confuse 9/11 with the GWoT. 9/11 was a battle. If you think 9/11=GWoT, then you’re going to think that the War is in Afghanistan. You’re also an idiot. But if you think the GWoT is larger than 9/11, and I think the members of the USS Cole, the victims of the Bali nightclub bombing, the first bombing of the World Trade Center and so on would agree, than Iraq is, as Osama Bin Laden said (I hear he’s an authority), the central front. And of course, it IS. Because putting a pluralistic democracy and encouraging free market policies wherever we can there right at the fulcrum between Saudi Islamic Crazy and Persian Islamic Crazy is a brilliant fucking idea. If you want to win. If you want Western Civilization to collapse under the steady gaze of your own self-importance, then not so much.
5) Obama. Not sure if he’s an idiot, a fool, or just too self-centered for anything but his own glorification to matter. He’s absolutely one of those guys who does all kinds of narcissistic stuff in order to fill the Dad shaped hole in his past.
Obama knows that all death belongs to GWB. He also knows that his political opponents are too principled to use body-count for gain. So, saddle up boys and ride into the meat-grinder.
amos,
I think you make very valid points about we need to do in Pakistan.
However, I also think sometimes we miss things by concentrating on the immediate issue and not being concerned with long term consequnces.
Quite frankly, I think Musharef has done an amazing job of keeping Pakistan stable while co-operating with the US. I have grave doubts about another leader doing the same.
I really don’t believe this stability can be maintained if we demand access to some areas and put him on the spot.
There’s a huge amount of history there and I think we should learn
from it as opposed to thinking we just won’t make the same mistakes.
I’m hugely interested in other’s take on this place.
“Smirky? Ever open an atlas and try to figure out how you get from here (the USA) to there (Afghanistan)? Ever study a globe of the earth?
No, I didn’t think so.”
And what the fuck does this have to do with the price of smack in Kabul? We’re already there. If we want to do anything there other than spend soldiers’ lives, we need to shut down the sanctuary in NWFP. Diplomatic-logistical nuance does not alter this simple fact.
However we lean on Mushy to get him to either effectively police his own territory or let us do it, it needs to get done. Unless of course your magic globe will give you the answer.
Shake it good and hard.