A friend who has just finished Obama’s Wars by Bob Woodward tells me, No review has reported the size of the opportunity Obama missed in late 2009 to start a pullout from Afghanistan. Here is Woodward’s diagram of forces:
ON HIS SIDE against more troops were Gen. Jones, Eikenberry, Biden, Gen. Lute, John Brennan, Colin Powell, half of Richard Holbrooke.
FOR ESCALATION: Petraeus, McChrystal, Mullen, Hillary Clinton, half of Gates.
Half of Gates on one side, half of Holbrooke on the other only means that both gave clear signs of doubt though they came out formally and at a certain distance for one tendency in the meetings, Gates a bit stronger pro than Holbrooke con.
Obama went with the latter group–or bent three-quarters in their direction.
Jones saw his role as running interference for Obama to prevent intimidation by the Pentagon. Obama didn’t use him. But Jones came around to support the 30,000 “compromise”–as they all did.
Obama has a hard time going against any powerful person he has once consulted if he takes that person to represent the conventional wisdom.
