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US troops coming home? Obama to say on Wednesday

Re: President Obama To Announce Details of Afghanistan Strategy On Wednesday

Boo Radley said:
You do realize that if you read Gates comments honestly, it would not support the claim made. I wonder which way you'll go? :coffeepap
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US troop withdrawal overshadows defence personnel changes - Telegraph

Mr Gates said during a visit to Afghanistan earlier this month that it is too soon to adjust strategy, even taking into account the impact of the May 2 killing of al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden in Pakistan.

Mr Gates also has cautioned against a rapid drawdown of US forces. He has argued that more time is needed to pound the Taliban to the point where its leaders will feel compelled to engage in serious peace talks. On the other hand, the administration knows the US public is weary of war – its human and financial costs.
 
Re: President Obama To Announce Details of Afghanistan Strategy On Wednesday

ptif219 said:
US troop withdrawal overshadows defence personnel changes - Telegraph

Mr Gates said during a visit to Afghanistan earlier this month that it is too soon to adjust strategy, even taking into account the impact of the May 2 killing of al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden in Pakistan.

Mr Gates also has cautioned against a rapid drawdown of US forces. He has argued that more time is needed to pound the Taliban to the point where its leaders will feel compelled to engage in serious peace talks. On the other hand, the administration knows the US public is weary of war – its human and financial costs.
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Doesn't support your claim. Knowing the public is weary doesn't mean by any streach that Obama is only doing to get re-elected. Nor does Gates say he is.
 
Re: President Obama To Announce Details of Afghanistan Strategy On Wednesday

The Prof said:
sure, domestic concerns have nothing to do with the 2012 election

LOL!

honestly reading, that is
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That wasn't his claim.
 
Re: President Obama To Announce Details of Afghanistan Strategy On Wednesday

"Obama's decision is aimed at placating an American public tired of a 10-year war that has cost 1,522 US lives."

link above
 
Re: President Obama To Announce Details of Afghanistan Strategy On Wednesday

Boo Radley said:
Doesn't support your claim. Knowing the public is weary doesn't mean by any streach that Obama is only doing to get re-elected. Nor does Gates say he is.
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That was not my claim. My claim is Obama is ignoring his generals and advisers for political reasons. This link shows Obama is not listening to Gates and making sure that troops are coming home at election time so he can use it in is campaign
 
Re: President Obama To Announce Details of Afghanistan Strategy On Wednesday

ptif219 said:
That was not my claim. My claim is Obama is ignoring his generals and advisers for political reasons. This link shows Obama is not listening to Gates and making sure that troops are coming home at election time so he can use it in is campaign
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I believe history shows that President Truman did much the same thing in ignoring one of his generals and it is considered as one of his finest hours.
 
Re: President Obama To Announce Details of Afghanistan Strategy On Wednesday

ptif219 said:
That was not my claim. My claim is Obama is ignoring his generals and advisers for political reasons. This link shows Obama is not listening to Gates and making sure that troops are coming home at election time so he can use it in is campaign
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Again, you don't support that. Generals have been ignored before and will be again. There are reasons for this beyond the purely political.
 
Re: President Obama To Announce Details of Afghanistan Strategy On Wednesday

haymarket said:
I believe history shows that President Truman did much the same thing in ignoring one of his generals and it is considered as one of his finest hours.
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So Truman did it to win an election?
 
Re: President Obama To Announce Details of Afghanistan Strategy On Wednesday

Boo Radley said:
Again, you don't support that. Generals have been ignored before and will be again. There are reasons for this beyond the purely political.
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When the final amount of troops come home at election time so Obama can use it as a campaign gimmick it is totally about his election and nothing else.
 
Re: President Obama To Announce Details of Afghanistan Strategy On Wednesday

ptif219 said:
When the final amount of troops come home at election time so Obama can use it as a campaign gimmick it is totally about his election and nothing else.
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Now that is what you have to support. That there is nothing else. I'll wait. :coffeepap
 
Re: President Obama To Announce Details of Afghanistan Strategy On Wednesday

hey, he's political, sure

but at least it's not as if there's not nothing else

LOL!
 
"Barack Obama is set to reject the advice of the Pentagon by announcing on Wednesday night the withdrawal of up to 30,000 troops from Afghanistan by November next year, in time for the US presidential election."

link above
 
The Prof said:
"Barack Obama is set to reject the advice of the Pentagon by announcing on Wednesday night the withdrawal of up to 30,000 troops from Afghanistan by November next year, in time for the US presidential election."

link above
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Agian, and reading for comprehension would help, that does not support there being only political reasons. No one disputes he rejecting the advice of the Pentagon.
 
Re: President Obama To Announce Details of Afghanistan Strategy On Wednesday

ptif219 said:
Looks more like a campaign stunt then policy to get votes for the upcoming election
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this is also my take on it. i mean....he's also claimed to have pulled the troops out of iraq, while leaving 50,000
still there. why would anyone still believe a word that comes out of this man's mouth? everything he says is
either a gross distortion or an outright lie.
 
Re: President Obama To Announce Details of Afghanistan Strategy On Wednesday

lewstherin said:
this is also my take on it. i mean....he's also claimed to have pulled the troops out of iraq, while leaving 50,000
still there. why would anyone still believe a word that comes out of this man's mouth? everything he says is
either a gross distortion or an outright lie.
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No one ever believed that all troops would be pulled from Iraq. And Obama's promise was not really to do so. He accepted the Iraqi timetable, and only spoke of combat troops. We all knew that we spend a lot of money for a base there and we were going to stay.
 
Boo Radley said:
No one disputes he (sic) rejecting the advice of the Pentagon.
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and the defense secretary doesn't dispute that politics are in play

good thinking
 
domestic concerns aren't politics

LOL!

honest reading, anyone?
 
Re: President Obama To Announce Details of Afghanistan Strategy On Wednesday

Boo Radley said:
No one ever believed that all troops would be pulled from Iraq. And Obama's promise was not really to do so. He accepted the Iraqi timetable, and only spoke of combat troops. We all knew that we spend a lot of money for a base there and we were going to stay.
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oh. then you're saying you knew he was a liar even before you voted for him. ok. cool.
 
Re: President Obama To Announce Details of Afghanistan Strategy On Wednesday

lewstherin said:
oh. then you're saying you knew he was a liar even before you voted for him. ok. cool.
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Not what I said, but do you believe any candidate for any office always tells the complete truth? Really?
 
Re: President Obama To Announce Details of Afghanistan Strategy On Wednesday

vote obama, 2012!

they all lie!

LOL!
 
The Prof said:
domestic concerns aren't politics

LOL!

honest reading, anyone?
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Actually, they are not. They can include politics, but, for example, the budget is a domestic concern. And any of the domestic issues that would need money that could come from what we're spending in our wars would be domestic concerns as well.
 
Boo Radley said:
They can include politics, but, for example, the budget is a domestic concern.
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you think gates was talking about the budget?

LOL!

honest reading, anyone?
 
The Prof said:
you think gates was talking about the budget?

LOL!

honest reading, anyone?
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He very well might be. The fact is, pretending you know is making a leap.
 
Swizz said:
US troops coming home? Obama to say on Wednesday - Yahoo! News

So what will he do?
- Insignificant drawdown so he doesn't break his promise? (say, 1-2,000 troops come home)
- Relatively significant start of a drawdown? (5-10,000)
- Huge withdrawal? (20,000 or more)
What SHOULD he do?

I tend to think it'll be somewhere mid-range, which seems about right to me.
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Probably 5,000 troops, with a committment to bring home most of the 30,000 troops used in the famous Surge. But that will still leave around 68,000 troops in country which I have not heard any talk about bringing home.
 
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