BOND: NO MORE EXCUSES
Commander-in-Chief Needs to Support Commander-on-the-Ground in Afghanistan
WASHINGTON, DC – In light of today’s significant progress in Afghanistan’s election dispute, U.S. Senator Kit Bond, Vice Chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, urged President Obama to quit delaying his decision on whether to support the winning strategy for Afghanistan outlined in July by General Stanley McChrystal.
“The clear message for the President is ‘no more excuses’,” said Bond of the news of Afghanistan’s election dispute resolution. “Delay leads to defeat, not victory; it’s critical for the Commander-in-Chief to support his commander-on-the-ground now.”
In March, Bond supported the President’s decision to move forward with a fully resourced counter-insurgency strategy—a clear, hold, and build plan that focused on rooting out terrorists and staying to protect the people of Afghanistan. In July, the President’s hand-selected top commander on the ground in Afghanistan, General McChrystal, delivered his assessment to the President on the resources needed for this new strategy to be successful.
Despite the urgency stressed in General McChrystal’s report, President Obama has continued to delay making a decision on whether he will give the General the resources needed for success in Afghanistan. White House officials repeatedly have blamed their own indecisiveness and lack of action on Afghanistan’s electoral uncertainty, an excuse Bond called a “red herring.” Today, President Hamid Karzai and his main challenger, Abdullah Abdullah, announced an agreement that will result in a runoff election on November 7th. Unbelievably, the Obama Administration is still calling a decision on whether to support General McChrystal’s winning strategy for Afghanistan weeks away.
Bond pointed out that ultimately, delay will lead to defeat—even the right strategy won’t work if not implemented on time. Ultimately, if we allow the Taliban and al Qaeda to reestablish terrorist safe havens across the country, no strategy will be successful, more American lives will be lost, and al Qaeda will have again have a firm Afghan base of operations, the same base that orchestrated the 9-11 attacks on our nation.
In addition to the devastating long-term impact of delay, the lack of resolve in Washington is a public diplomacy disaster now in Afghanistan. The Senator pointed out that while the people of Afghanistan are rightly questioning whether the United States is going to abandon them, the terrorists are emboldened by the hope that they can just wait us out.
“The wavering in Washington is disheartening American troops, demoralizing the people of Afghanistan, and emboldening our terrorist enemies,” said Bond.