Gov. Palin: New Afghanistan Development Dangerous to NATO

If Karzai takes "unilateral action" against NATO, we should immediately withdraw our forces
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Sarah Palin posted on her Facebook Notes page today her her reaction to a recent threat made by Afghanistan's president to NATO:

New Afghanistan Development Dangerous to NATO

After learning this afternoon of Afghan President Karzai’s ultimatum to NATO concerning airstrikes, we need to consider how dangerous this new development is. While it's always devastating to hear about civilians killed in the fight against the Taliban, President Karzai surely knows that no one works harder to eliminate civilian casualties than NATO. His public ultimatum issued today to allies and supposed friends is dangerous. What President Karzai is saying is that if we don’t severely limit our air campaign he will take “unilateral action.” And he further says that if the airstrikes continue we will be seen as an “occupying” power. This is an indirect way of saying that American and NATO forces will be fair game, which is obviously an unacceptable situation that threatens our troops. His comments reflect the reality that there is a growing divide between NATO and the Karzai government. Let us be clear: we are in Afghanistan fighting for the Afghan people and for the security of our country and our allies. If President Karzai continues with these public ultimatums, we must consider our options about the immediate future of U.S. troops in his country. If he actually follows through on his claim that Afghan forces will take “unilateral action” against NATO forces who conduct such air raids to take out terrorists and terrorist positions, that should result in the immediate withdrawal of U.S. forces from Afghanistan and the suspension of U.S. aid. I still firmly support our mission in Afghanistan, but we must have the support of the host government. Our troops’ mission will be compromised and their safety endangered if the Afghan government threatens us.

- Sarah Palin

- JP

Why President Obama's Afghanistan Flub Matters

Sorry Mitchell Bard (and other lefties); You can't have it both ways
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Here's President Obama telling reporters, “As I said, we will be out of Afghanistan by the end of this year… Combat operations in Afghanistan have ended”:


Obama actually doubled down on his gaffe and said "Afghanistan" twice. Doesn't he know the difference between Iraq and Afghanistan? Well that depends. If you were one of those who insisted that Sarah Palin misspeaking about North Korea and South Korea meant that she was unqualified for high office, then we have a foreign policy crisis on our hands:

Saying "Afghanistan" instead of "Iraq" is something that any of us could easily do.

But here's the thing: Any of us did not stand up two four years ago and claim we were qualified to fill a job that is the American presidency. We haven't written books, made speeches, endorsed candidates and spoken to the (slobbering left-wing) media as if we were policy experts. And we haven't been letting White House personnel leave their jobs to organize a 2012 presidential reelection bid.

In short, more should be expected of President Obama than any of us, based on how he has portrayed herself, and how he is treated by the same media that lied to get him elected.

The real story, though, isn't that Obama said "Afghanistan" instead of "Iraq." Let's be honest: Vice President Joe Biden could have just as easily blown a line like that.

No, the real story is that Obama was discussing a complex, precarious, highly dangerous issue as if he were an expert, even though he clearly isn't.

h/t: Jim Hoft

- JP

Day By Day (January 6, 2011)

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Good morning! It's a wonderful life if we just take it Day By Day.



Support Chris Muir's pro-Palin Day By Day

- JP

Day By Day (December 5, 2010)

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Good Morning! It's a wonderful life if we just take it Day By Day.



Support Pro-Palin Day By Day

- JP

Godspeed, Smitty

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Smitty, Stacy McCain's blogging buddy at The Other McCain, is shipping out for Afghanistan. We wish him Godspeed and a safe return. Like his brothers and sisters in arms carrying out their missions all around the world, he will be in our prayers. For those who wear the uniform, words aren't enough to thank them for their service, hence the following tribute:


- JP

Another reason Gov. Palin did not endorse Chuck DeVore?

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Sarah Plain's endorsement of Carly Fiorina in the California GOP primary for U.S. Senate is looking better with each passing day. TheRightScoop catches DeVore on video saying that the Taliban and Al Qaeda do not present "an existential threat" to the United States:



Is the very existence of Al Qaeda and the Taliban a threat? You betcha! Is this DeVore's Gerald Ford moment? Time will tell...

- JP

USA Today Interviews Sarah Palin

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From USA Today's On Politics blog:

Sarah Palin and President Obama don't agree on much, but last year's Republican vice presidential nominee just gave the president's defense of "just wars" a thumbs up in an interview with USA TODAY. In fact, she said that the president's address in Oslo, where he accepted the Nobel Peace Prize today, reminded her of what she wrote on the same subject in her hugely successful memoir, Going Rogue.

"I liked what he said," Palin told us in a phone interview. "I talked too in my book about the fallen nature of man and why war is necessary at times." For Palin, that view strikes close to home: Her eldest son, 20-year-old Track, is an Army infantry member who recently returned from a tour of duty in Iraq.

"I'm on my knees more than ever praying for his safety along with all of his fellow troops," Palin said. "Of course, war is the last thing I believe any American wants to engage in, but it's necessary. We have to stop these terrorists."

But the former governor also said that Obama should "follow more closely in the footsteps" of his predecessor, George W. Bush, who kept the homeland safe and made the lessons of the 9/11 attacks clear to the nation every day.

USA Today will have more from the interview in Friday's edition of the paper. An audio excerpt from the interview and the full blog post are here.

- JP

Palin: Timetable for withdrawal signals a lack of resolve

Posting on her Facebook Notes page Tuesday night, Sarah Palin commented on President Obama's decision to send more troops to Afghanistan, a move she and others had urged him to make three months ago. The 2008 GOP vice presidential candidate said that she supports the president’s decision "as long as we’re in to win, and as long as troop level decisions are based on conditions on the ground and the advice of our military commanders." The former Alaska governor voiced her reservations, however, about Obama's talk of an exit date, which she said "risks sending the wrong message":

Finally, A Decision for Afghanistan: We're In It to Win It

Three months ago, I joined a number of Americans in urging President Obama to provide the resources necessary to achieve our goals in Afghanistan. Tonight, I am glad he mostly heeded that advice.

At long last, President Obama decided to give his military commanders much of what they need to accomplish their mission in Afghanistan. In the end, he decided to endorse a “surge” for Afghanistan, applying the counterinsurgency principles of “clear, hold and build” that worked so well in Iraq. Given that he opposed the surge in Iraq, it is even more welcome that he now supports a surge in Afghanistan.

This approach means, as Senator John McCain has noted, that “We now have an opportunity to build a bipartisan consensus in support of a vital national security priority: defeating Al-Qaeda and its violent extremist allies in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and ensuring that these countries never again serve as bases for terrorist attacks against America and our allies.”

We should be clear, however, that fewer troops mean assuming more risk. Talk of an exit date also risks sending the wrong message. We should be in Afghanistan to win, not to set a timetable for withdrawal that signals a lack of resolve to our friends, and lets our enemies believe they can wait us out. As long as we’re in to win, and as long as troop level decisions are based on conditions on the ground and the advice of our military commanders, I support President Obama’s decision.

- Sarah Palin

- JP

Sarah Palin's new Facebook op-ed on Afghanistan

Sarah Palin has posted again on Facebook for the first time since September 24:

We Must Win in Afghanistan

For two years as a candidate, Senator Obama called for more resources for the war in Afghanistan and warned about the consequences of failure. As President, he announced a comprehensive new counterinsurgency strategy and handpicked the right general to execute it. Now General McChrystal is asking for additional troops to implement the strategy announced by President Obama in March. Hundreds of thousands of Americans have sons, daughters, fathers, mothers, sisters and brothers in harm's way in Afghanistan right now. We owe it to all those brave Americans serving in uniform to give them the tools they need to complete their mission.

We can win in Afghanistan by helping the Afghans build a stable representative state able to defend itself. And we must do what it takes to prevail. The stakes are very high. The 9/11 attacks were planned in Afghanistan, and if we are not successful there, al Qaeda will once again find a safe haven, the Taliban will impose its cruelty on the Afghan people, and Pakistan will be less stable.

Our allies and our adversaries are watching to see if we have the staying power to protect our interests in Afghanistan. I recently joined a group of Americans in urging President Obama to devote the resources necessary in Afghanistan and pledged to support him if he made the right decision. Now is not the time for cold feet, second thoughts, or indecision -- it is the time to act as commander-in-chief and approve the troops so clearly needed in Afghanistan.

- Sarah Palin

- JP

Palin joins other distinguished Americans signing open letter

What issue could persuade conservative Republican Sarah Palin and Vichy Republican David Frum, one of Palin's most vocal critics, to sign the same same document? The answer is Afghanistan. Palin and Frum are among a number of Americans who signed an open letter to the president urging him to give the commanders on the ground there the troops and other resources they need to achieve success.

The open letter effort was organized by the Foreign Policy Initiative (FPI), "a non-profit, non-partisan organization that seeks to promote an active U.S. foreign policy committed to robust support for democratic allies, human rights, a strong American military equipped to meet the challenges of the 21st century, and global economic competitiveness."

The signatures of Palin and Frum appear with those of Debra Burlingame (the sister of the pilot of hijacked American Airlines Flight 77 that was deliberately crashed into the Pentagon on 9/11 by Al Qaeda terrorists), Steve Biegun (the former Bush NSC aide who briefed Sarah Palin on foreign policy during the 2008 campaign and defended her against malicious leaks from former McCain staffers), Pete Hegseth (who served as an infantry Platoon Leader in Baghdad during Iraq's 2005 nationwide elections with the 101st Airborne Division and later founded Vets for Freedom), Beverly Perlson (who founded Band of Mothers) and a number of other distinguished Americans:

The Honorable Barack Obama
President of the United States
The White House
Washington, DC

Dear Mr. President:

The situation in Afghanistan is grave and deteriorating. This is in part the legacy of an under resourced war effort that has cost us and the Afghans dearly. The Taliban has retaken important parts of the country, while a flawed U.S. strategy has led American forces into secondary efforts far away from critical areas. However, we remain convinced that the fight against the Taliban is winnable, and it is in the vital national security interest of the United States to win it.

You’ve called Afghanistan an "international security challenge of the highest order, " and stated that "the safety of people around the world is at stake." Last month you told a convention of veterans, “Those who attacked America on 9/11 are plotting to do so again. If left unchecked, the Taliban insurgency will mean an even larger safe haven from which al Qaeda would plot to kill more Americans. So this is not only a war worth fighting. This is fundamental to the defense of our people.”

We fully agree with those sentiments. We congratulate you on the leadership you demonstrated earlier this year when you decided to deploy approximately 21,000 additional troops and several thousand civilian experts as a part of a serious counterinsurgency campaign. Your appointments of General Stanley McChrystal as top commander and David Rodriguez as second in command in Afghanistan exemplified the seriousness of purpose you spoke about during the campaign. We are heartened to see that the much needed overhaul of our military operations has begun.

Since the announcement of your administration’s new strategy, we have been troubled by calls for a drawdown of American forces in Afghanistan and a growing sense of defeatism about the war. With General McChrystal expected to request additional troops later this month, we urge you to continue on the path you have taken thus far and give our commanders on the ground the forces they need to implement a successful counterinsurgency strategy. There is no middle course. Incrementally committing fewer troops than required would be a grave mistake and may well lead to American defeat. We will not support half-measures that repeat the errors of the past.

This is, as you have said, a war that we cannot afford to lose. Failure to defeat the Taliban would likely lead to a return of al Qaeda to Afghanistan and could result in terrorist attacks on the United States or our allies. An abandonment of Afghanistan would further destabilize the region, and put neighboring Pakistan and its nuclear arsenal at risk. All our efforts to support Islamabad’s fight against the Taliban in Pakistan’s tribal regions will founder if we do not match those achievements on the other side of that country’s porous northwestern border.

As you observed during the 2008 U.S. presidential campaign, “You don't muddle through the central front on terror and you don't muddle through going after bin Laden. You don't muddle through stamping out the Taliban.” We completely agree. Having “muddled through” in Afghanistan for years, this is no longer a politically, strategically, or morally sustainable approach.

Mr. President, you have put in place the military leadership and sent the initial resources required to begin bringing this war to a successful conclusion. The military leadership has devised a strategy that will reverse the errors of previous years, free Afghans from the chains of tyranny, and keep America safe. We call on you to fully resource this effort, do everything possible to minimize the risk of failure, and to devote the necessary time to explain, soberly and comprehensively, to the American people the stakes in Afghanistan, the route to success, and the cost of defeat.

With the continued bravery of our troops, and your continued full support for them and their command team, America and our allies can and will prevail in Afghanistan.

Sincerely,

Steve Biegun
Max Boot
Ellen Bork
Paul Bremer
Christian Brose
Debra Burlingame
Eliot A. Cohen
Ryan C. Crocker
Thomas Donnelly
Eric Edelman
William S. Edgerly
Jamie M. Fly
David Frum
Abe Greenwald
John Hannah
Pete Hegseth
Margaret Hoover
Thomas Joscelyn
Frederick W. Kagan
Robert Kagan
William Kristol
Tod Lindberg
Herbert London
Clifford May
Robert C. McFarlane
Joshua Muravchik
Sarah Palin
Keith Pavlischek
Beverly Perlson
Danielle Pletka
John Podhoretz
Stephen Rademaker
Mitchell B. Reiss
Karl Rove
Jennifer Rubin
Randy Scheunemann
Gary Schmitt
Dan Senor
Ashley Tellis
Marc Thiessen
Daniel Twining
Peter Wehner
Kenneth Weinstein
Christian Whiton

Related: You must read this diary from someone who is actually on the ground in Afghanistan.

- JP

Gov. Palin Offers Support to Family of Captive Soldier

News release from the governor's office:

Governor Sarah Palin offered her support and encouragement to the family of a Ft. Richardson soldier captured in Afghanistan.

"Todd and I are praying for Private First Class Bowe Bergdahl, his family, and all of his fellow soldiers who are putting their lives on the line to defend our freedom and protect democracy abroad,” Governor Palin said. “The capture of Private Bergdahl and the bombings in Jakarta prove that we have not defeated terrorism, and that radical extremists will stop at nothing to attack Westerners and our ideals."

More than 7,000 soldiers and airmen stationed in Alaska are currently deployed overseas.

"Our men and women who volunteer to wear the uniform have the best training and experience of any military in the world,” said Lt. Gen. (AK) Craig E. Campbell, Adjutant General of the Alaska National Guard. “We know that when we deploy that anything can happen, and we pray that PFC Bergdahl’s fellow soldiers can find him quickly and reunite him with his family."

- JP

Is Gov. Palin going back to the Middle East?

Governor Sarah Palin recently tweeted:

"Got Fed ok for Adjutant Gen Campbell, Command Sgt Major Choate and me to travel to our Ak Army Natl Guard troops on Wed. Glad to go to them"

The 2008 GOP vice presidential candidate's tweet didn't say exactly where she would travel to visit the toops. But one has to wonder why she would need permission from the Feds to visit her own state's Guard troops unless she's talking... er, tweeting about going overseas to do it. The only other place we can think of that she might need federal permission to visit Alaska Army Guard troops is Fort Greely.  The missile base, however, is a hundred miles from Fairbanks, so a visit to the facility would not involve much in the way of travelling. Also, Gen. Cambell should not need federal permission to visit Greely.

The governor is about due for a return trip to visit Alaska's troops in the M.E.:

In July 2007, Gov. Sarah Palin (R-AK) traveled to a U.S. military base in Kuwait to visit Alaska National Guard soldiers who provide logistical support for our operations in Iraq. On her return trip, she stopped to visit wounded troops at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany.

Detachments of the Alaska Guard have been sent to both Iraq and Afghanistan since 2005. An infantry battalion was deployed to the middle east in 2006, and another infantry company deployed to Iraq in 2007. The governor's son Track deployed with his regular Army unit in 2008. The Alaska Army National Guard's aviation units have also seen a series of company sized rotations to Iraq.

If Gov. Palin does go back to the M.E., it would be a major story. It would also be nice if she could visit Track. Intrigued, we're awaiting something more specific details regarding her travel plans.

- JP