First 100 days: Dispatching thousands

The AP : "Obama plans to dispatch thousands more military and civilian trainers to Afghanistan by the fall on top of the 17,000 combat troops he has already ordered, senior administration officials said Thursday. Obama's war strategy, which he will unveil today, includes no time line for withdrawal of troops. The war began more than seven years ago. The sources said Obama's goal is to stabilize Afghanistan and eliminate the terrorist havens that have taken root in Pakistan. They said the plan is built around benchmarks that will allow the President and Congress to check whether it is working." The Washington Post says that the strategy isn’t only about Afghanistan; it’s also about Pakistan. “In outlining his plan after a two-month review that began the week of his inauguration, Obama will describe it as a sharp break with what officials called a directionless and under-resourced conflict inherited from the Bush administration. Far from al-Qaeda being vanquished and the threat to the United ... (link)