Dismiss arbitrary timelines for Afghanistan (Rep. Tom Cole)

I am, however, deeply troubled by the President’s suggestion that our troops be withdrawn after 18 months. While I have tremendous faith in the ability of the United States soldier to accomplish his or her mission, wars are not fought on timelines. Conditions on the ground and well-defined benchmarks should be the measure used when deciding if troops should come home – not arbitrary timelines.

By telegraphing our intention to abandon the battlefield based on the calendar rather than the progress of our mission, we simply embolden the terrorists to wait us out. Not only does this put our soldiers at greater risk, it also undermines the long term authority of the legitimate Afghan government. The bottom line is this: the terrorists must be defeated and if that takes longer than 18 months, and I strongly suspect it will, then we have to stay until the job is done.

The American public deserves political leadership that is as committed to winning this war as our soldiers are. After committing an additional 30,000 troops, the President has a responsibility to fully embrace his role as the Commander in Chief. This will entail rallying the public to support our troops, and building a genuine bi-partisan coalition in Congress to continue the hard work that lies ahead.

There is no doubt that the President has committed our nation more deeply to Afghanistan. It is my belief that we must move forward with determination and a will to win by dismissing arbitrary timelines that undermine the efforts of our forces and our allies. Our soldiers have shown both these qualities on the battlefield and now the President needs to follow their example.

Cross-posted from The Foundry.