Marsha Blackburn

President Obama has told us that he meets once a month with his senior advisers to discuss the War in Afghanistan. Although the President has described winning in Afghanistan as essential, the events of the last ten days are worrisome to me. I am afraid that the President may have taken his eye off the ball when it comes to Afghanistan. I am also concerned that many of my Democrat colleagues in the House seem satisfied to let our vital mission in Afghanistan fail.

I will always be a strong supporter for the tens of thousands of Americans – many of them Tennesseans – who are deployed in this vital and dangerous struggle. I know that the President has made the right decision when he declares that winning in Afghanistan is vital – and his rhetoric is getting stronger, but unfortunately his actions have yet to catch up.

The recent controversy concerning General McChrystal and his staff have made it evident that the President is facing a serious internal problem. It is pretty clear to most observers that the diplomats and civilian policymakers in Afghanistan and Washington are undercutting our military warriors. Counterinsurgency strategy as complicated as that which we have undertaken in Afghanistan requires carefully orchestrated teamwork from all involved.

Our strategy can’t succeed if our generals are fighting the terrorists on one front and the bureaucrats on the other. The time has come for the President to step up and become consistently engaged and offer clear direction to his team.

Last week the President had one of his regular monthly meetings on Afghanistan with his senior advisors. This week General Petraeus, who is no stranger to Tennesseans after his tour of duty at Ft. Campbell, is being confirmed to take command of our forces in Afghanistan.

We all know that General Petraeus is the right man for the job and will do an outstanding job in Afghanistan, just as he did in Iraq, but with only 12 meetings left before the President’s July 2011 withdrawal date, General Petraeus doesn’t have time for petty Washington politics. Our military commander has only 12 meetings to win a war.

While the President needs to take control of the situation in Afghanistan and in the White House situation room, as well, Congress needs to do our job as well. The funding bill for Afghanistan is pending before Congress as we speak. Our troops need these emergency resources. But liberal Democrats in Congress have weighed the bill down with onerous and wasteful spending on social programs. Our troops deserve the resources they need and they deserve them before the 4th of July.