Support for Afghanistan Fading, Poll Finds
From the Wall Street Journal, "Poll Reflects Afghan War Doubts": Americans are pessimistic about the prospects of victory in Afghanistan; 59% say they are feeling less confident that the war will come to a successful conclusion. And 51% say they would oppose sending more troops to the conflict.
"No matter what we do, it's not going to be the right thing," said Rick Culotta, a 46-year-old Republican in Metairie, La., who responded to the poll.
I don't worry about these numbers as long as the administration does the right thing by sending more troops. As we saw in the later stage of the Iraq counter-insurgency campaign, after the U.S. changed strategy - and conditions on the ground improved - public opinion saw an uptick As I reported earlier (see, "Reconciliation and Resolve in Afghanistan"):
Success matters. As the U.S. beefs up its contingents in Afghanistan, and as it continues its work in "flipping the Taliban," public opinion will hold steady. The worst outcome will be for the Obama administration to cave to the antiwar defeatists and order a downturn in U.S. engagement.
(Interesting side note about this poll, as noted earlier: Independent against Obama outnumber those who support the administration.
No war effort can be successful without the president -- the Commander in Chief -- reminding the American people daily about the importance of doing the HARD thing. You can't spend 99% of your time selling an unnecessary government takeover of health care and then 1% talking about Afghanistan and expect the people to see it as vitally important.
ReplyDeleteObama doesn't want Afghanistan to get in the way of his domestic priorities, so he will shelve it for as long as possible. Then he will cite falling opinion polls as part of the justification for bailing. His strategy is so transparent -- a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Obama's lack of leadership and dovish instincts put us all in real danger. We allow the Taliban back into Afghanistan, bludgeon the Israelis into submission on behalf of the Palestinians, give Russia a big victory on missile defense, allow Iran to keep on enriching uranium -- all while Obama goes to the UN to talk about (our) nuclear disarmament (as if we are the danger) and spends his time at the G20 talking about climate change. And that's not to even discuss the trillions in debt he is saddling us with.
Its worse than I expected it to be. Heaven help us all!
Great comments, Ken!
ReplyDeleteI agree, Donald. Kenneth didn't leave me much to say but that's okay because he said it so well. "Heaven help us all" is exactly right. It's worse than I thought it would be too.
ReplyDeleteCarter was horrible but in comparison to Obama he's beginning to look good. How crazy is that?
But. But. Afghanistan was the REAL war! It wasn't that long ago...
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI can't stand Obama's socialistic regime either, but you can't blame him for inheriting a war W couldn't finish.
ReplyDeleteIt's time to face the facts: Afghanistan is not going to be reconstructed into a liberal democracy. That Neocon pipe dream is just as insane today as it was in the hallucinatory "Mission Accomplished" glory days.
We're already burdened with massive debt to the People's Republic for this war. Why sacrifice more American lives and treasure for an illegal, ill-conceived war?
I have a two word answer for you Old Rebel:
ReplyDeleteKill Terrorists.
Grizzly Mama,
ReplyDeletePeople who resist invaders are not terrorists.