This article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon, Dec. 1, 2009 - Missouri's senior U.S. senator, Republican Christopher "Kit" Bond, was among a select congressional group invited to meet with President Barack Obama just hours before his Tuesday night speech in which the president announced that 30,000 additional U.S. troops will be headed within weeks to Afghanistan.
Bond was pleased to hear about the troop surge. But he wasn't happy with Obama's announcement of a timetable for withdrawal. And the senator told the president directly.
"We need a success strategy, not an exit strategy," said Bond, vice chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, in a statement after the president's half-hour address. "When it comes to troop movements in Afghanistan, the president should listen to the military commanders on the ground, not arm-chair generals in Washington."
But Bond made a point of adding, "I am encouraged that the president has renewed his commitment to the strategy he outlined in March, a strategy that will allow our troops to return on success and put Afghanistan on the road to stability."
Bond's observations were generally echoed in comments by other area Republicans, including U.S. Rep. Roy Blunt, R-Springfield, who is running next year to succeed Bond, and local lawyer Ed Martin, a Republican challenging U.S. Rep. Russ Carnahan, D-St. Louis.
Blunt observed, "The president tonight tried to walk a line between the political views of those who are ready to give up on the war in Afghanistan, and the real-world needs of both our troops on the ground and the Afghan people, all of whom need to have confidence that the U.S. is there to get the job done.
"While I'm pleased that he will take steps toward adopting Gen. (Stanley) McChrystal's troop level recommendations, setting a published timetable while announcing a troop increase will satisfy neither of those groups," Blunt continued.
"While we all hope to achieve success in a short time frame, the president's announcement that our role in the war will simply conclude within 20 months is difficult to comprehend. We have no reason to believe the Taliban in Afghanistan will adhere to a timetable dictated by politics in the United States."
Meanwhile, the bi-state region's two most prominent Democrats -- U.S. Sens. Claire McCaskill of Missouri and Dick Durbin of Illinois, both of whom are close to Obama -- offered comments that also appeared to reflect the mixed feelings in their party.
Said McCaskill: "We cannot continue to allow the Taliban or Al Qaeda to gain ground in Afghanistan and therefore the commander-in-chief should be commended for establishing a thoughtful strategy that acknowledges that the war in Afghanistan is not a war of choice."
But she added, "I will be looking closely at the benchmarks being set for this new strategy, including ensuring our allies and the Afghans are stepping up to do their part and that we are expending our nation's resources responsibly."
Durbin, who has been Obama's mentor, was downright terse: "Obama took months to make this policy, I'll wait to react to it."
U.S. Rep. William Lacy Clay, D-St. Louis and Missouri co-chair of Obama's presidential campaign, offered what appeared to be reluctant support.
"While I remain deeply concerned about this deployment and the additional American casualties that are sure to follow, I was pleased to hear the president clearly define our vital national security interests, identify reachable mission goals, and lay out a reasonable timeline to turn this fight over to the Afghan government," Clay said. "I pledge my full support for our brave soldiers, and for their families, who await their safe return."
In an interview earlier Tuesday, Clay blamed former President George W. Bush and his administration for what he viewed as their failure to address the deteriorating situation in Afghanistan adequately over the past eight years. "Afghanistan, and the lawless areas along the border with Pakistan, have always been the real front line of the fight against terrorism," Clay said.
U.S. Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer, R-St. Elizabeth, was the only Missouri Republican on Tuesday to offer solid praise for the president's decision. Luetkemeyer's only complaint was that it took Obama months to reach one.
"After much delay, it is good to see that the president and the administration have finally decided to give our troops critical resources that they need to move forward with our mission in Afghanistan," Luetkemeyer said. "I look forward to working with my colleagues and military commanders to ensure that our troops have the resources they need to complete their mission and return home safely. We must never waver in our support for our men and women in uniform as they stand on the front lines of freedom and fearlessly fight to protect our nation and families."
Meanwhile, U.S. Rep. Russ Carnahan, D-St. Louis, said he's preparing on Wednesday to
"ask tough questions about the new Afghanistan strategy" when Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Defense Secretary Robert Gates, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Admiral Michael Mullen testify before the Foreign Affairs Committee.
Carnahan sits on the panel and is vice chairman of the House subcommittee that oversees operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. On Wednesday, he was elevated to chairman.
Carnahan called Obama's strategy "tough, smart,and comprehensive."
"I was encouraged to hear that along with a clear military strategy that will stabilize Afghanistan, this new approach will also include a serious civilian strategy to hold the Afghan government accountable and a partnership strategy with Pakistan to make the entire region more secure and bring Al Qaeda to justice," the congressman added.
But at the same time, Carnahan said, ""As the president said, we cannot ignore the price of these wars. We must balance this effort with the significant demands of our economiccrisis and other international pressures. And we must insist on accountability. We have a responsibility to service members and to taxpayers of this country to make sure that we have a strict accounting of how resources are being spent."
