Los candidatos responden a Obama sobre Afganistán

El Presidente Obama anunció anoche una reducción de tropas de Afganistán: 10,000 este año, y los 23,000 que queden del aumento de 2009 el año que viene. 70,000 soldados continuarán allí más allá de 2012, los mismos que había cuando asumió la Presidencia.

Algunos candidatos ya han respondido. El más crítico ha sido Mitt Romney, que anda a la caza de la base electoral de McCain en las primarias. Pawlenty está en la misma línea pero más ambiguo. La nota discordante la pone Jon Huntsman que cree que la reducción anunciada por Obama se queda corta.

Mitt Romney:

“We all want our troops to come home as soon as possible, but we shouldn’t adhere to an arbitrary timetable on the withdrawal of our troops from Afghanistan. This decision should not be based on politics or economics. America’s brave men and women in uniform have fought to achieve significant progress in Afghanistan, some having paid the ultimate price. I look forward to hearing the testimony of our military commanders in the days ahead.”

Tim Pawlenty:

"When America goes to war, America needs to win. We need to close out the war successfully, and what that means now is not nation-building. What it means is to follow General Petraeus's advice and to get those security forces built up where they can pick up the slack as we draw down.

I supported the surge, and I would have supported it even at a higher level as General McChrystal recommended. I supported President Obama's decision to surge even at the levels that he did, but it shows you a window in his thinking on the very night that he announced the surge, he very quickly announced a deadline for withdrawal."

Jon Huntsman:

"Now it is time we move to a focused counter-terror effort which requires significantly fewer boots on the ground than the President discussed tonight. We need a safe but rapid withdrawal which encourages Afghans to assume responsibility."

Herman Cain:

"The President suggested that we cannot become isolationist or engage in every international conflict, but instead, we must charter a “middle course.” How does he define this? It seems to be yet another foggy foreign policy coming from this administration.

Instead of providing the American people with clarity, President Obama proposes an abrupt withdrawal of our troops that could potentially compromise the legitimate gains we have made in Afghanistan. Sadly, I fear President Obama’s decision could embolden our enemy and endanger our troops.

President Obama is correct on one account: it is time for nation-building at home and high time the Afghan people take more responsibility in bringing peace and stability to their own country."