Washington, June 25: The revolving door spectacle at the top of America’s military brass may have been executed with swift efficiency by Barack Obama but the fallout may just be beginning as Republicans prepare again to challenge his plans to begin a troop withdrawal from Afghanistan next year.
Fresh and possibly unfriendly scrutiny of President Obama’s war strategy will come as the Senate Armed Services Committee prepares to hold hearings to confirm the appointment of General David Petraeus to replace General Stanley McChrystal who was given his marching orders on Wednesday.
That General Petraeus will sail through the hearings is not in question. With luck he will have been confirmed by the end of next week allowing him to travel to Afghanistan quickly thereafter. The risk for the White House, however, is that the hearings become a forum for grievances and second-guesses about a war strategy that from all perspectives does not seem to be meeting its goals.
–Agencies