Once again President Barack Obama did what he does best, told it the way it is, straight from the teleprompter.  He spoke at a Naval Air base in Florida with a background of sailors nicely lined up behind him while he spoke. “I will never rush the solemn decision of sending you into harm’s way; I won’t risk your lives unless it is absolutely necessary,” he told servicemen and women.  He added, “If it is necessary, we will back you up to the hilt.”  Here we go on the Obama campaign trail again.  President Obama has received much criticism for his inability to decide whether to send additional troops to Afghanistan and the White House answer to this is give a speech to show support of the military.

General Stanley McChrystal, in a 66 page report to the pentagon on August 31, 2009,  requested an additional 40,000 troops in order to execute a counterinsurgency strategy in Afghanistan. In that report he stated that “success demands a comprehensive counterinsurgency campaign” and he also warned that “failure to provide adequate resources also risks a longer conflict, greater casualties, and higher overall cost and ultimately… are likely to result in mission failure.”

According to White House Press Secretary, Robert Gibbs, Obama is ”going to take his time to decide what is right for the American people”.  Since receiving the troop request, lets look at what the President didn’t need time for in deciding what was right for the American people: a trip to Copenhagen to pitch Chicago’s Olympics bid, attending fundraisers for the DNC, hosting a Latin music night at the White House, creating a war with Fox News and appearing on the David Letterman show and all the Sunday news shows (except FOX) to sell his health care plan.  These are just a few.  There are many more events that Obama either hosted or made remarks at.  While some would argue that these are duties that the President needs to attend, I say true, maybe some are.  But I would argue that deciding the fate of the war in Afghanistan should be first priority.  If you need advice and a strategy, then you get the advice, formulate the strategy and make a decision.  Let us not forget that it has now been reported that Obama has played as much golf in the last ten months as President Bush did in his first two years and ten months in office.  Obviously Obama does not brain storm military strategy on the golf course or we would have won the war by now with all his rounds of golf.

President Obama picked General McChrystal to be the U.S./NATO Commander in Afghanistan.  I assume he picked McChrystal because his assessment of the war would be thorough, deliberate and his recommendations a formula for success.   Obama has said that the war in Afghanistan is a “necessary war” and a “war worth fighting”.  If this is what he truly believes than a delay of this long on the troop request is not “backing up our military to the hilt”.  We now see reports out of Afghanistan that troop morale is down.  Should they now be cheered up and confident because the President gave yet another speech proclaiming his support for our military?  The American people are getting tired of the organized events, teleprompter speeches and all the photo-ops.  It has become apparent that President Obama has decided his presidency will be nothing but a campaign trail for support of his policies.  What we need is a President who is willing to lead and let his support fall as it may.