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SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2009
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NEWS ABOUT: troop levels

troop levels stories: 36 news summaries

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Analysis

In Afghanistan Debate, Obama Focuses on Exit

White House wants
to make sure surge
will enable handover

Nov 17, 09 8:15 AM CST
(Newser) - The Obama administration’s extended ruminations on an Afghan surge aren’t really over how many troops to send in—they’re about how they’ll get those troops out. Obama’s main problem with the initial military plan was that it seemed too open ended, administration sources tell Gerald... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Afghanistan • Barack Obama • troop surge • Hamid Karzai • troop levels • Afghanistan war • President Obama • Afghanistan exit strategy

 Pentagon Holds 
 Secret Afghan 
 War Games 

Mullen leads exercise to assess effects of troop surge

Oct 26, 09 6:06 AM CDT
(Newser) - The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Adm. Mike Mullen, led a secret war game earlier this month to assess the Obama administration's options in Afghanistan, including a 44,000-troop surge. A team of military leaders used Gen. Stanley McChrystal's analysis to examine how Taliban insurgents and the Afghan... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Afghanistan • Barack Obama • war games • troop surge • Robert Gates • Joint Chiefs of Staff • Adm. Mike Mullen • counterterrorism • troop levels • Afghanistan war • Stanley McChrystal

TALK SHOW ROUNDUP

 McCain: 
 Afghan Call 
 Can't Wait 


Troops decision dominates, but everybody backs away from 'dithering' Cheney

Oct 25, 09 11:56 AM CDT
(Newser) - The pace of President Obama's decision on troop levels in Afghanistan again dominated the Sunday dial. John McCain told Face the Nation that Obama should move regardless of the Nov. 7 runoff's outcome: "Every day we delay will be a delay in this strategy succeeding.” Orrin Hatch... More »

MORE ABOUT:
John McCain • Dick Cheney • Charles Schumer • Olympia Snowe • Orrin Hatch • Carl Levin • health care reform • troop levels • Sherrod Brown • Sunday morning talk shows

Poll Numbers

Public Thinks Obama's Clueless on Afghanistan

Deeply divided country leaves president between rock, hard place

Oct 21, 09 8:17 AM CDT
(Newser) - When it comes to the Afghan war, Barack Obama is between a rock and a hard place politically. Only 45% of the public approves of his handling of it, down 10 percentage points from last month, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll, and a whopping 63% don’t... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Afghanistan • Barack Obama • troop surge • troop levels • Afghanistan war • poll numbers • Stanley McChrystal

'Irresponsible'
to Send Troops Without Election Results: Kerry

Says Afghan leadership needs to be in place

Oct 18, 09 7:39 AM CDT
(Newser) - The US is in no position to send more troops to Afghanistan with that country's presidential election still up in the air, Sen. John Kerry told State of the Union in an interview yesterday. Speaking from Kabul ahead of an announcement on whether a runoff would be held, the Senate... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Afghanistan • John Kerry • Hamid Karzai • runoff election • troop levels • President Obama

 Britain to Send 500 More 
 Troops to Afghanistan 

Expects other NATO countries to follow suit

Oct 14, 09 7:11 AM CDT
(Newser) - Britain will send 500 more troops to Afghanistan, Gordon Brown is expected to announce today, defying calls to reduce Britain’s presence there. The men will come with strings attached, however: “The prime minister will want assurances from military chiefs that the extra troops will be properly equipped,”... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Afghanistan • Gordon Brown • Britain • troop levels • Helmand province • Afghanistan war

UPDATED

 Pentagon Downplays 
 13K Surge in Afghan 
 Support Troops 

Extra thousands swell US numbers in Afghanistan

Oct 13, 09 7:53 AM CDT
(Newser) - When does 21,000 equal 34,000? When the Pentagon is counting. The 21,000 additional troops President Obama approved for Afghanistan earlier this year have been accompanied by 13,000 extra support troops, bringing the total number in Afghanistan to nearly 68,000. Pentagon and White House officials have... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Afghanistan • Pentagon • troop surge • Robert Gates • US military • troop levels • Afghanistan war • Stanley McChrystal

OPINION

Pres. Hamlet Must Send in
His Troops

Krauthammer: Dems have to get serious about Afghanistan

Oct 9, 09 11:15 AM CDT
(Newser) - It’s time for Democrats, particularly President Obama, to get serious about the war in Afghanistan, writes Charles Krauthammer. From John Kerry on, Democrats have campaigned on the cynical political calculation that Afghanistan was the “good war.” But now that it’s time to send troops into that... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Afghanistan • Barack Obama • troop levels • Afghanistan war • Charles Krauthammer • Stanley McChrystal

ANALYSIS

Petraeus Goes Quiet, for
Good or Ill

Face of Iraq surge disappears in Afghanistan debate

Oct 5, 09 6:11 AM CDT
(Newser) - By the end of George W. Bush's second term David Petraeus was the country's most famous military man, carpeting the media with interviews and pressing the flesh on Capitol Hill. The general who personified the Iraq troop surge is still around, and spoke up in strategy sessions with Barack Obama... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Afghanistan • Barack Obama • troop surge • White House • David Petraeus • Rahm Emanuel • troop levels • Obama administration • Stanley McChrystal

 Obama May Need GOP 
 to Send More Troops 

Democrats uneasy about Afghan buildup

Oct 1, 09 9:41 AM CDT
(Newser) - If President Obama decides to go along with Gen. Stanley McChrystal’s request for 40,000 more troops in Afghanistan, he’s probably going to need Republican help to do it. Democrats are increasingly opposed to the buildup, with party leaders telling the Washington Post they worry that more... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Afghanistan • Lindsey Graham • troop levels • Afghanistan war • Obama administration • Stanley McChrystal

Gates, Jones Split on Afghan Troop Timetable

DoD chief: decision in 'a few weeks'; general says 'no deadline'

Sep 27, 09 2:49 PM CDT
(Newser) - The White House appears slightly out of sync on when exactly it expects to make a decision on troop levels in Afghanistan. "I don't have a deadline in my mind," national security adviser James Jones told Bob Woodward of the Washington Post, adding, "The most important thing... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Afghanistan • Robert Gates • White House • James Jones • troop levels

TALK SHOW ROUNDUP

 Clinton: Obama 
 Not 'Dissing' 
 McChrystal 
 on Troops 


Former first couple dominates Sunday morning shows

Sep 27, 09 9:40 AM CDT
(Newser) - Bill Clinton came to President Obama's defense today, saying on Meet the Press that the president isn't "dissing" Gen. Stanley McChrystal's request for more troops in Afghanistan. Both Clintons emphasized that settling the Afghan election is vital in determining whether the US has a legitimate partner in Hamid Karzai.... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Afghanistan • Hillary Clinton • John McCain • Bill Clinton • troop levels • Kit Bond • Sunday morning talk shows

 Obama May Boost 
 Drones Instead 
 of Troops 

Shifting focus to Pakistan may avoid increasing forces

Sep 22, 09 5:59 AM CDT
(AP) - The White House is looking at expanding counterterror operations in Pakistan as an alternative to a major military escalation in Afghanistan, two senior officials tell the AP. The military would rely on armed drones that could contain al-Qaeda in a smaller, if more remote, area and keep its leaders from... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Afghanistan • Pakistan • drones • tribal areas • al-Qaeda • troop levels • Afghanistan war

 McChrystal: 
 US 'Will Fail' 
 Without More 
 Afghan Troops 

Blunt warnings bared in secret Pentagon report

Sep 21, 09 3:23 AM CDT
(Newser) - Afghanistan's top commander Gen. Stanley McChrystal made a blunt request for more troops in a confidential report to the Pentagon last month, warning that without more forces the war "will likely result in failure." The 66-page report, obtained by Bob Woodward of the Washington Post, contains repeated... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Afghanistan • International Security Assistance Force • troop levels • NATO troops • Afghanistan war • counterinsurgency • Stanley McChrystal

TALKSHOW ROUNDUP

 Obama 'Skeptical' 
 About More Troops 
 in Afghanistan 

Pres calls Russians 'paranoid' and refuses to comment on ACORN

Sep 20, 09 9:13 AM CDT
(Newser) - If it’s Sunday, it’s President Obama, who took to five Sunday talk shows today (including Univision, but excluding Fox) to promote his agenda. Among the highlights:
  • Obama warned US commanders on This Week he’s “skeptical” that more US troops in Afghanistan will make a difference.
... More »

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Afghanistan • Russia • health care • Barack Obama • missile defense system • unemployment • troop levels • Sunday morning talk shows

ANALYSIS

Obama May Need the GOP on Afghan War

Republicans line up behind troop increases, while Democrats balk

Sep 3, 09 6:58 AM CDT
(Newser) - If President Obama decides to send more troops to Afghanistan, based on Gen. Stanley McChrystal's grim review, he may have to rely on Republicans and not Democrats for support, writes the New York Times. The original narrative of the "good war" has faded over eight years, and August's... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Barack Obama • Senate Republicans • Russ Feingold • House Republicans • troop levels • Afghanistan war • Congressional Republicans

 US to Beef Up 
 Afghanistan 
 Combat Force 

Up to 14K fighters swap places with noncombatant troops

Sep 2, 09 8:21 AM CDT
(Newser) - The Pentagon will add up to 14,000 combat troops to its Afghanistan force, replacing noncombatant support units with more "trigger-pullers" as casualties continue to climb. With support for the war waning, the Defense Department's "force optimization" plan will not increase the number of US troops, and... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Afghanistan • Pentagon • US troops • Department of Defense • International Security Assistance Force • troop levels • Afghanistan war • defense contractors • Stanley McChrystal

 Afghan Report Pressures 
 Prez for More Troops 

Where military sees inadequate resources, Dem base sees hopeless mire

Sep 1, 09 9:54 AM CDT
(Newser) - As he heads to Camp David tomorrow, with General Stanley McChrystal's assessment of the situation in Afghanistan under his arm, President Obama faces a political minefield. The grim report lays the groundwork for deploying more troops to Afghanistan, the New York Times reports, adding pressure on the president, who must... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Afghanistan • troop levels • President Obama • Afghanistan exit strategy • Stanley McChrystal


 McChrystal: 
 US Is Failing 
 in Afghanistan 

General wants more Taliban engagement, warns of losing citizens' support

Aug 31, 09 6:57 AM CDT
(Newser) - The US military's strategy in Afghanistan is failing, Gen. Stanley McChrystal will tell commanders in Washington today. A copy of the US commander's remarks leaked to the BBC compares the military to a bull charging at a matador—losing strength with each individual cut. McChrystal's report says Afghans are suffering... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Afghanistan • Taliban • International Security Assistance Force • troop levels • Afghanistan war • Stanley McChrystal

(Newser) - American military officials leading the NATO mission in Afghanistan told the Obama administration they need more troops to do their job, compounding Washington's headaches in the wake of an allegedly fraudulent presidential election. Support for the Afghan war is diving among Americans, and several US senators said this weekend that... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Afghanistan • Taliban • US military • Adm. Mike Mullen • troop levels • NATO troops • Afghanistan war • Richard Holbrooke

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