President Obama's 33 minute speech at West Point last night is receiving relatively good reviews from Florida's Congressional delegation, with one notable exception being Orlando area Democrat Alan Grayson, who has not been in Washington long enough (obviously) to play by the rules generally associated with partisan politics.
The fiery freshman said after the address, in which the President confirmed reports that he will be sending 30,000 more new troops to the theatre, but also making sure they come home by 2011, that "Continuing the war in Afghanistan and the war in Iraq is a terrible mistake. We do not need to have troops 8,000 miles from our shore to keep us safe. I hope the President will re-consider this decision."
Brooksville GOP Congresswoman Ginny Brown-Waite has been extremely critical of Obama this year, but was complimentary lst night, saying, "In March, the President said our fight in Afghanistan was of necessity. I agreed with him. When he added troops in the spring, I agreed with him. He has a recommendation from his commanders and he should follow it."
We didn't receive any official reaction from Tampa area Congresswoman Kathy Castor. Nor from Governor Charlie Crist, who now needs to concern himself with such events as he's running for federal office. His GOP Senate challenger, Marco Rubio, praised Obama, but hit the GOP talking points in criticizing the fact that it's 30,000, not 40,000 troops that will be going to war, and that there's a date certain for withdrawing troops. Rubio said, "
While his decision is long overdue, I commend President Obama for finally laying out specifics on the way forward in Afghanistan. While I support the President’s call for additional troops, I am concerned it falls short of General McChrystal’s specific request. I am especially alarmed by the President’s insistence on announcing a withdrawal start date.
“Afghanistan is part of the greater global war against violent jihadists. Victory won’t be achieved based on how quickly American troops can leave. A secure America requires us to defeat the jihadists in Afghanistan and prevent this fragile nation from once again becoming a safe haven for al Qaeda. This will require the full commitment and support of the President and Congress.
“As our military and diplomatic teams work to fulfill their mission in Afghanistan, I urge the President to heed his commanding officers’ advice in the coming months and years.”
This article appears in Dec 2-8, 2009.