We now learn from a report by the New York Times that Mike McConnell, Director of National Intelligence, and General Michael Hayden, Director of CIA went to Pakistan secretly on January 9 to try and reach an agreement with Pakistan President Musharraf to allow America greater latitude to operate in the tribal areas where Al Qaeda and Taliban militant groups are active. The report noted that Musharraf rebuffed their proposals to expand any U.S. combat presence in Pakistan, covertly, unilaterally, and/or by joint operation with Pakistan.
The war in Afghanistan is past the 6th year and we have failed to find Bin Laden. Worst of all, our invasion of that country, with the mission to destroy the Taliban and Al Qaeda, failed to seal the area off where we believe Bin Laden and al-Zawahri are hiding, the tribal area bordering Pakistan and Afghanistan. Instead of fighting the war concerning the people who struck the U.S. on 9-11, Bush's attention was, and still is, on Iraq. The troop level necessary to fight the war in Afghanistan and seal off the enemy's escape was never there. It would be hard to choose what war Bush has been more incompetent on, Iraq or Afghanistan.
The U.S. is now getting ready to send more troops to Afghanistan and trying hard to get NATO to respond. Many military people are saying we are losing the war. Why is the President, after 6 years of war, and in his last year in office, finally making a push to find Bin Laden? The answer is that this President is such a small person and has been so reckless in his behavior, that he thinks capturing Bin Laden will erase all the mistakes he has made during his tenure as President. However, Bush will be remembered as the President who started a war and occupation in Iraq over WMD that did not exist, and a President who failed to fight the real war against the people who harmed our country on 9-11. Six years later he is trying to find his groove in Afghanistan. It is hard to absorb the real cost of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan along with all the loss of life and the area concerned is less stable now then before the wars. The tragic story is that the American people can not even be told or explained what our objectives are. The President and supporters of both wars keep changing the story of why we are there.
