Mitt Romney has a clear, concise, and detailed vision for America's way forward in the war in Afghanistan. Unfortunately for us, and probably for his electoral prospects, he will not share what that vision is.
Instead he serves up the sludge that is found on his campaign website, revealed and dissected below the fold.
Mitt Romney will never make national-security decisions based upon electoral politics. Upon taking office, he will review our transition to the Afghan military by holding discussions with our commanders in the field. He will order a full interagency assessment of our military and assistance presence in Afghanistan to determine the level required to secure our gains and to train Afghan forces to the point where they can protect the sovereignty of Afghanistan from the tyranny of the Taliban. Withdrawal of U.S. forces from Afghanistan under a Romney administration will be based on conditions on the ground as assessed by our military commanders.
The first thing that comes to mind reading what Romney calls "Mitt's Plan" is that there is not one specific policy proposal in it. Let's go line by line:
Mitt Romney will never make national-security decisions based upon electoral politics.
Because even Romney isn't foolish enough to say the opposite.
Upon taking office, he will review our transition to the Afghan military by holding discussions with our commanders in the field.
So, as President, Mitt Romney would hold discussions with his commanders. As has every other President, with the possible exception of William Henry Harrison. How revolutionary!
He will order a full interagency assessment of our military and assistance presence in Afghanistan to determine the level required to secure our gains and to train Afghan forces to the point where they can protect the sovereignty of Afghanistan from the tyranny of the Taliban.
"I'm going to talk to lots of people and try to figure out what is even going on over there. I know it involves sovereignty and tyranny, however."
Withdrawal of U.S. forces from Afghanistan under a Romney administration will be based on conditions on the ground as assessed by our military commanders.
Because withdrawal of U.S forces from Afghanistan under the Obama administration has totally neglected conditions on the ground, and ignored the assessments of our military commanders. Everyone knows Obama ended the war in Iraq just so he could prolong the war in Afghanistan! Come on.
Romney calling this his "plan" for Afghanistan should leave a big door open for the Obama campaign to burst through; but Afghanistan is so invisible to the average voter. Obama, though, has proven himself a more-than-capable commander-in-chief, and should tout it more often in the hunt for independent votes.
The majority of military votes will undoubtedly be cast for Romney. But why would any right-thinking servicemember give him the time of day, when he is clueless about the conflict they are in?
I went to Afghanistan as part of the 2010 surge. I want it to end. I feel it is wasteful and impossible to win. President Obama is the man I trust to end it. I certainly do not want to hand it back to the GOP, who mismanaged it for 7 years!