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October 10, 2009
After Nobel Nod, Obama Convenes Afghan War Council
Hours after being named a Nobel peace laureate, President Barack Obama Friday shouldered his duties as commander in chief of the US armed forces and convened his war council for crucial talks on Afghan strategy.
Obama gathered his top political, military, and security aides in the secure Situation Room of the White House for the fourth in a series of in-depth consultations on rescuing the US mission in the unpopular eight-year war.
"The president had a robust conversation about the security and political challenges in Afghanistan and the options for building a strategic approach going forward," an administration official told AFP.
Obama "looks forward to continued discussion on Wednesday," the official said.
Obama was scheduled to be briefed by Afghan war commander General Stanley McChrystal on his report warning that the US counter-insurgency mission in Afghanistan could fail within a year without more troops.
The meeting came amid more suggestions of tension between the White House and top military brass on the best way forward.
White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said that Friday's meeting could be followed by more than one meeting before the president makes a decision on strategy, still several weeks away.
The Taliban scoffed at Obama's shock Nobel prize award on Friday, suggesting his policy towards Afghanistan barely differed from that of ex-president George W. Bush.Related article: Obama urged to spur peace
"We have seen no change in his strategy for peace," said Zabihullah Mujahid, a spokesman for the Islamic fundamentalist militants.
"He has done nothing for peace in Afghanistan," Mujahid told AFP. "He has not taken a single step for peace in Afghanistan or to make this country stable."
Afghan President Hamid Karzai, who has seen his stock diminish in the United States amid election fraud allegations, immediately congratulated Obama on Friday, saying he was the "appropriate" person to win the peace prize.
"His hard work and his new vision on global relations, his will and efforts for creating friendly and good relations at global level and global peace make him the appropriate recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize," Karzai spokesman Siamak Hirai told AFP.
On Thursday, Gibbs said there was "clearly a difference" between Al-Qaeda and the Taliban. He said Al-Qaeda was as an "entity that, through a global, transnational jihadist network, would seek to strike the US homeland."
"I think that the Taliban are obviously exceedingly bad people that have done awful things. Their capability is somewhat different, though, on that continuum of transnational threats."said Gibbs.
The White House comments on the Taliban came after the group said Wednesday it did not pose a direct threat to the United States.
Wild Thing's comment......
"Gibbs: "I think that the Taliban are obviously exceedingly bad people that have done awful things."
OMG ....yes well ok they are bad people but um they are worse then bad people you FOOL, they are terrorists and they would love to slice your head right off your body.
Posted by Wild Thing at October 10, 2009 05:55 AM
Comments
A council of war never votes to attack... it's one of the truisms of life.
Posted by: Anonymous at October 10, 2009 06:46 AM
I think I'm going to be sick......:(
Posted by: Lyn in Australia at October 10, 2009 07:50 AM
Robert Gibbs is a Sock Puppet of the highest order.
Quotes like the one re:the Taliban, are laughable."Exceedingly bad people"? I mean Really. really bad people. Well yeah.
Meanwhile the newest Nobel Peace prize winner is convening his "war council".
Command decisions by committee, that's the ticket. If it fails, it's the committee's fault. If it succeeds, it's because I prevailed in leading the committee. What a maroon.
While all this is going on, American troops lives are in danger because of lack of numbers and support. A real leader, which our current President, is obviously not, would have sent the necessary reinforcements, a long time ago.
The only option here, Mr President is WINNING!
Posted by: SEAN. at October 10, 2009 10:40 AM
Obama is going to bail out, how many Americans will he leave behind in the vacuum he's creating? One thing for sure with his councils, the signals to the radicals couldn't be clearer. With 65 years of proxy wars fought without the commitment of our constitutional guidelines in undeclared wars we either walk away from those commitments without a clear victory or blaze the trail for a Communist succession under UN rule, where we then fight for UN ideals, not our own. Maybe we've evolved to have the same ideals as the UN, something to ponder.
52% of Americans have deemed that they would rather have the enemy at their throats with constant appeasement than to knock that neighborhood bully on his ass!!! Just a recent clue to anarchy, wasn't it ACORN that illegally squatted in foreclosed homes? Wait until they deem you unworthy of your home and seize it for their own, after all you owe it to them. For that 52%, at some point that bully will visit your home, just bray your peace spiel and they'll listen, just remember it was you who negotiated with them.
Posted by: Jack at October 10, 2009 11:13 AM
I think that much of the time Gibbs is talking without even paying attention to what he is saying.
obama is going to discuss with a committee the Afghan situation. How many of that committee have more than a few days in Afghanistan? How many have any military time? However, they and their opinions will all be "expert".
I think it is telling that the Taliban and Al queda reactions to obama are negative. Even though he seems to cater to muslims even they have no respect for him.
Posted by: TomR at October 10, 2009 11:50 AM
Gibbs talks like a man with a paper asshole. The problem is the troops are in the middle of this game of appeasement. Worst of all their lives are on the line while obama playing word games with the enemy.
Posted by: Mark at October 10, 2009 12:13 PM
I thought one thing still on the table was to make some Taliban our new allies. The ones that cut off heads are out, but the ones that just stone young girls to death are in. Obamaism at it worst.
Posted by: Ron Russell at October 10, 2009 06:09 PM
I don't even know what to say. Did this jackass know something and wait until after his Nobel Appeasement Prize to do something? Is he just a divider and not a decider that can't get his head out of his ass to do what he should do? You can't make any of these scum allies, they must be summarily dispatched directly to allah. The military leaders swore an oath to protect our country from all enemies both foreign and domestic and should take the CIC away from this clown and fight to win.
Posted by: Bob A at October 10, 2009 07:21 PM
Gates needs to learn quickly that what
he says is not just things thrown out there.
They are heard all the way to every cave
etc. the terrorist are and it only hurts
our troops. Will Gates learn this? I doubt
it, he may not even care.
Disgusting.
Tom that is interesting and I agree.
Posted by: Wild Thing at October 11, 2009 01:00 AM
Thank you everyonje for your input about this
it is really upsetting that this kind of thing
should even be happening.
Posted by: Wild Thing at October 11, 2009 01:01 AM
These people might be dwelling in caves - but no make mistake. They are WELL organised and connected to the Internet.....and they are well ahead of the game when it comes to stratedgy. Call me stupid....but why hasn't the US bombed the crap our of those poppy crops? They are the main revenue source for Al Queida & Taliban weaponry & operations. So a few farmers are going to find it tough for a while. It would make sense for the US to subsidize these people until American horticulturalists came up with a cash crop that produces a decent income. Give them a choice.....co-operate or we'll torch yer fields!!
Posted by: Lyn in Australia at October 11, 2009 01:22 AM
Damned typos.....grrrrrrrrrrrrrr!
These people might be dwelling in caves - but make no mistake.
Posted by: Lyn in Australia at October 11, 2009 01:23 AM
"Do we get to win this time?" --John Rambo
Posted by: Anonymous at October 11, 2009 02:41 PM
