Feral Jundi

Monday, June 28, 2010

Strategy: Secrets From Inside The Obama War Room

Filed under: Afghanistan,Strategy — Tags: , , , , , , , — Matt @ 2:01 PM

     I know this is a little old, but it is totally relevant to today’s discussion about the future of Afghanistan.  As you read through this story, you come to understand why McChrystal or any other military leader in this war might be frustrated.  I said this before, and I will say this again.  There is not a general out there that thinks that declaring a withdrawal date is a good idea in the context of winning wars.  This administration is set on July 2011, and General Petraeus has made his promises to that administration that he could finish this in that time frame. It is a promise he will have to break in my view.

     Most of all, the Taliban love this date, and it is a countdown to their victory. The enemy will certainly pour it on as this date gets closer, and I just don’t see how this is helpful for any kind of plans with Afghanistan. Or the Taliban will just sit and wait, and then pour it on as soon as we leave. It just makes no strategic sense.

     Petraeus has a lot of work to do in turning around the war. There is alleviating the fears that Karzai has with this date, there is letting our troops fight the way they see fit and allowing them to win battles, there is dealing with Pakistan and ensuring they continue their fight, there is the training of the ANA and police so they can take control of the country, and all of this is dependent on changing that stupid date for withdrawal. Or Petraeus can keep his promise of defeat and go down with the ship. Only time will tell, and the clock is ticking. –Matt

——————————————————————

Secrets From Inside the Obama War Room

by Jonathan Alter

May 15, 2010

The first of 10 “AFPAK” meetings came on Sept. 13, when the president gathered 16 advisers in the Situation Room in the basement of the White House. This was to be the most methodical national-security decision in a generation. Deputy national-security adviser Tom Donilon had commissioned research that backed up an astonishing historical truth: neither the Vietnam War nor the Iraq War featured any key meetings where all the issues and assumptions were discussed by policymakers. In both cases the United States was sucked into war inch by inch.

The Obama administration was determined to change that. “For the past eight years, whatever the military asked for, they got,” Obama explained later. “My job was to slow things down.” The president had something precious in modern crisis management: time. “I had to put up with the ‘dithering’ arguments from Dick Cheney or others,” Obama said. “But as long as I wasn’t shaken by the political chatter, I had the time to work through all these issues and ask a bunch of tough questions and force people to sharpen their pencils until we arrived at the best possible solution.”

(more…)

Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Military News: McChrystal Steps Down, Petraeus Takes Over Afghanistan Post

     McChrystal is replaced by Petraeus.  The reason for McChrystal being let go is because of what was said in the Rolling Stone article.  The choice of Petraeus was the best choice for the continuity of the mission and strategy according to the President.-Matt

——————————————————————

Petraeus to Replace McChrystal

Jonathan Weisman

JUNE 23, 2010

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama relieved Gen. Stanley McChrystal of commanding forces in Afghanistan, swiftly acting in the wake of derisive comments Gen. McChrystal and his aides made to Rolling Stone magazine, according to a White House official.

The president will announce the decision in the Rose Garden shortly. Gen. David Petraeus, the head of the military’s Central Command and the architect of the surge of forces into Iraq in 2007, will take over as the commanding general in Afghanistan, administration officials said.

The decision to put Gen. Petraeus in command sends a signal that the president stands behind the counterinsurgency tactics pushed hard by Gen. McChrystal and championed by Gen. Petraeus. Technically, as combatant commander in the military region that includes Afghanistan and the Middle East, Gen. Petraeus was Gen. McChrystal’s commanding officer.

By agreeing to take command, Gen. Petraeus himself was showing resolve to see the counterinsurgency effort through in Afghanistan.

Gen. McChrystal left the White House Wednesday morning after about a half-hour meeting with the president to discuss the critical comments the general and his aides made about top administration officials. The general was not seen returning to the White House for the Afghanistan strategy session later in the morning, as he has been expected, the Associated Press reported.

Mr. Obama had summoned Gen. McChrystal back to the White House for a face-to-face meeting to answer for critical comments he made about the administration that are raising questions about the general’s future.

Gen. McChrystal has apologized for the comments he made in this week’s issue of Rolling Stone magazine titled “The Runaway General.”

Gen. McChrystal is quoted as accusing U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan Karl Eikenberry of undermining his efforts in Afghanistan. Aides to the general are quoted anonymously as saying Obama didn’t seem to know who McChrystal was when he appointed him to run the war early last year.

Story here.

 

Thursday, April 15, 2010

Maritime Security: Obama’s Piracy Executive Order Prohibits ‘Donations’ And Maybe Ransoms?

   Wow, if this is interpreted this way, this would be very significant.  If in fact ransoms were considered ‘donations’, well then private security is now the only option that shipping companies would have.  Stand by for more on this one, and already the companies are jumping on this.  Check out the Marque Star’s press release in support of this new order. –Matt

——————————————————————

Obama’s Pirate Executive Order Sparks Concerns With Shipping Lines

15 April 2010

USA / SOMALIA – Late last night President Barak Obama signed an executive order that forbids American corporations and their overseas subsidiaries from having financial dealings with groups that “…directly or indirectly threaten the peace, security, or stability of Somalia.”

President Obama’s order specifically highlights the problems of piracy in the Indian Ocean, stating that: “I hereby determine…acts of piracy or armed robbery at sea off the coast of Somalia threaten the peace, security, or stability of Somalia. I…determine that…the making of donations…would seriously impair my ability to deal with the national emergency declared in this order, and I hereby prohibit such donations…”

Though specifically aimed at certain individuals and groups, principally the Islamists and warlords fighting against the Somali government and African Union peacekeeping forces, the order has sparked concern amongst shipping lines that it could be construed as applicable to companies that pay ransoms’ to pirates who hijack their vessels, making them culpable.

Though there is some confusion, companies with US interests who are the victims of Somali piracy are now advised to consult with the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the US Treasury Department before making any payments to hijackers.

You can see the full Presidential Order here.

Link to story here.

 

Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Industry Talk: Obama Administration Steers Lucrative No-Bid Contract For Afghan Work To Dem Donor

Filed under: Afghanistan,Industry Talk — Tags: , , , , , , — Matt @ 12:10 AM

   How come this does not surprise me? For years, the media was slamming President Bush and his administration for this practice, and now here we have the Obama Administration doing the same thing? Didn’t President Obama run on a campaign saying he would not do this?

   Although I am not too shocked by this stuff, because as we can see within the last year, Obama has been highly dependent on contractors for his war effort. He needs us, as much as he needs his military, in order to make his war plans successful before elections come up.  Not to mention that if he wants to have a long term commitment in Haiti, then that is going to impact his plans for Afghanistan and Iraq as well. And guess who will make up the difference in the meantime?-Matt

—————————————————————–

Obama Administration Steers Lucrative No-Bid Contract for Afghan Work to Dem Donor

January 25, 2010

By James Rosen

The Obama administration this month awarded a $25 million federal contract for work in Afghanistan to a company owned by a prominent Democratic campaign contributor without entertaining competitive bids, Fox News has learned.

Sunday: U.S. Army soldiers patrol inside Pech Valley, Kunar province, in northeastern Afghanistan. Private consultants Checchi & Company won a no-bid contract from the Obama administration to ‘train the next generation of legal professionals’ in Afghanistan. (AP)

Despite President Obama’s long history of criticizing the Bush administration for “sweetheart deals” with favored contractors, the Obama administration this month awarded a $25 million federal contract for work in Afghanistan to a company owned by a Democratic campaign contributor without entertaining competitive bids, Fox News has learned.

The contract, awarded on Jan. 4 to Checchi & Company Consulting, Inc., a Washington-based firm owned by economist and Democratic donor Vincent V. Checchi, will pay the firm $24,673,427 to provide “rule of law stabilization services” in war-torn Afghanistan.

(more…)

Saturday, October 3, 2009

Afghanistan: ‘Obama’s War’ Teaser, Frontline, October 13th

« Newer PostsOlder Posts »

Powered by WordPress