Bipartisan support for troop increase

Republican and Democratic congressional leaders are supporting President Obama’s plan to add troops and benchmarks to the U.S. military’s efforts in Afghanistan.

It’s a rare show of bipartisanship, and a far cry from the intense partisan debates on the war in Iraq.

{mosads}”I support the strategy the president unveiled today because it reflects the advice of our commanders on the ground,” said House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio). “I hope he will continue to honor their counsel because we should not allow political considerations here at home to trump the importance of achieving success in the region.”

Boehner, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and other congressional leaders were briefed on the plan Thursday.

“This strategy recognizes a point that I have emphasized for years, and one that I shared with the president following my visit last month to Afghanistan, which is that we must have a regional approach to countering terrorism,” Pelosi said in a statement released Friday afternoon.

Obama’s new strategy includes sending 4,000 additional troops to train Afghan security forces, troops that will supplement the 17,000 extra combat soldiers that Obama ordered to Afghanistan shortly after taking office. House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) also issued a statement offering support.

But there is also opposition to adding troops from both Republicans and Democrats, many of whom opposed, or came to oppose, the war in Iraq.

“I have this sinking feeling that we’re being sucked into a war without end,” said Rep. James McGovern (D-Mass.), a leading critic of the Iraq war.

McGovern had signed on to a letter earlier this month with a group of Republicans and Democrats opposing the buildup of 17,000 troops in Afghanistan. Among the Republican opponents were Reps. Walter Jones (N.C.), John Duncan Jr. (Tenn.) and Howard Coble (N.C.).

In announcing the policy, Obama said the United States needs to “have a clear and focused goal to disrupt, dismantle and defeat al Qaeda in Pakistan and Afghanistan, and to prevent their return to either country in the future.” But he also said the U.S. will no longer be issuing a “blank check” to the Afghan government, nor will the U.S. military “blindly stay the course” if goals are not being met.

During the final years of the Bush administration, Democrats pushed not only for benchmarks by which to measure U.S. and Iraqi military progress, but also for American troop withdrawal timelines, only to be repeatedly rebuffed until the final months of Bush’s tenure.

Sam Youngman contributed to this article.

This article was updated at 3:53 p.m.