Fred Thompson: The War In Afghanistan Is Lost
I gotta admit, I disagree with Fred on this one:
“It really doesn’t matter how President Obama divides the Afghan baby, how he splits the difference between McChrystal and Biden. Because the war has been lost,” Thompson said on his radio show today. “I say this because of one sad and simple fact. The president does not have the will and determination to do what’s necessary to win it. His heart’s not in it, and never has been. The Taliban knows it. Al Qaeda knows it. Our allies know it. And the American people know it.
“Our enemies are now emboldened and our friends are discouraged. We cannot prevail if the American people are not willing to make the sacrifices necessary for an extended effort. The case has not been made to them to justify this effort. The case can only be made by the president. This president is unable or unwilling to make that case,” Thompson said.
I don’t think the war has to be lost. I think we could win. But winning would require a leader willing to commit to victory even if that commitment becomes politically unpopular.
Bush won in Iraq by sticking to his guns. But Obama isn’t a leader like Bush. Obama isn’t a leader at all. He’s a celebrity.
Of course, to be fair, you can’t entirely compare what was the situation in Iraq to the situation in Afghanistan. Though Iraq was ruled by a tyrant, that nation had an infrastructure. They had police forces and schools and a court system and all the makings of a civilized society. They just needed some rebuilding a representative government to run it.
In Afghanistan there really is none of that. I’ve heard troops refer to Afghanistan as “the rock pile,” and that’s probably more accurate than a lot of people would like to admit.
So rebuilding in Afghanistan is a much bigger challenge than rebuilding in Afghanistan was.
But I remain convinced we could do it. With the right leadership. And at one time I did think Obama could be that leader. He certainly campaigned tough on Afghanistan. But now that he’s in office, that leader he aspired to be isn’t in evidence.
