Obama goes with political calendar rather than military on Afghan withdrawal

NY Times:

President Obama plans to announce Wednesday evening that he will order the withdrawal of 10,000 American troops from Afghanistan this year, and another 20,000 troops, the remainder of the 2009 “surge,” by the end of next summer, according to administration officials and diplomats briefed on the decision. These troop reductions are both deeper and faster than the recommendations made by Mr. Obama’s military commanders, and they reflect mounting political and economic pressures at home, as the president faces relentless budget pressures and an increasingly restive Congress and American public.

The president is scheduled to speak about the Afghanistan war from the White House at 8 p.m. Eastern time.

Mr. Obama’s decision is a victory for Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr., who has long argued for curtailing the American military engagement in Afghanistan. But it is a setback for his top commander in Afghanistan, Gen. David H. Petraeus, who helped write the Army’s field book on counterinsurgency policy, and who is returning to Washington to head the Central Intelligence Agency.

Two administration officials said General Petraeus did not endorse the decision, though both Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates, who is retiring, and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton reluctantly accepted it. General Petraeus had recommended limiting initial withdrawals and leaving in place as many combat forces for as long as possible, to hold on to fragile gains made in recent combat.

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All you have to do is look at the election calendar for 012 to understand what Obama is trying to do. In doing so he is endangering the progress already made and the troops that will be left in place. In fact the bulk of the troops will be withdrawn during the height of the fighting season in Afghanistan. If you decided to bring out that many troops it would be best to do it after the US election when the Taliban are largely in hibernation mode.

It is very possible the Taliban are just holding back waiting for the exodus to begin to attack the troops and make it look like we are retreating under pressure.

I am not surprised that Gen. Petraeus did not sign onto this amateurish strategy.