Congress' favorite man in uniform, Gen. David Petraeus, returns to the Hill Tuesday morning for the first time since becoming the Afghanistan war's commander in July. Over the next two days, you'll hear him explain why his counterinsurgency strategy is making progress -- or "arresting Taliban momentum," as the phrase goes -- however tenuous those security gains may can be.
You may hear him talk about all the insurgents his NATO troops have killed and captured. And you may hear him talk up security gains in Helmand Province's Nawa District as proof that his approach is working.
The Senate Armed Services Committee is up first, and there are some certainties to expect. Right-wing senators will try to get Petraeus to reject the Obama administration's deadline to begin transitioning troops out of Afghanistan in July (meaningless as that date might be). Left-wing senators will try to get Petraeus to overpraise the Afghan security forces, to hasten the U.S. departure.
Everyone will try to get some certainty on how many troops will leave Afghanistan in July, and the parts of Afghanistan they'll be departing.
But many other questions are likely to be overlooked. So here's what we'd ask, if anyone would ever elect us to high office. (Shudder.) Add your own questions in the comments. We'll be at the hearing to figure out if we get any clarity on the war out of Petraeus, or learn anything new about the political will in Congress to keep the Afghanistan war going.
- The United Nations found that more civilians died last year -- due, in enormous part, to the Taliban -- than any other year in the war, even though your strategy holds the protection of the population as the key to success. What's going wrong?
- That same U.N. report warned that your increase of the air war is bringing civilian casualties caused by air strikes back on the rise. Is the air campaign going too far?
- The Afghanistan surge has focused on the south and the southwest. But attacks are rising in the eastern areas that border Pakistan -- where al-Qaeda is, in any event. Is it time to re-emphasize the east? Do you even have enough troops to do so?
- After July, will there be new counterinsurgency operations, or will you be transitioning the ones you're undertaking now to the "hold" and "build" phase?
- The leader of the Afghan training command, Lt. Gen. William Caldwell, is bullish on the rapid increase in Afghan soldiers and police. But how do you assess their quality? How many are capable of operating independently of NATO forces, and what's the rate of growth for that independence?
- The Taliban's homemade bombs are increasingly ineffective, but there are more of them than ever. Do you need more sensors or drones or bomb-sniffing dogs? If not, what else can be done to break up the bomb networks and bring the bomb totals down?
- If you're taking territory away from the Taliban, why aren't more insurgents making peace with the Afghan government? Is this an Afghan problem, or is there more that NATO should be doing to help bring the Taliban in from the cold?
- Speaking of, after getting fooled by a fake Taliban leader, is NATO still taking actions to facilitate high-level peace talks between the Karzai government and the Taliban?
- Has the increase of U.S. civilians in Afghanistan made any difference in the war? Where are most of the "civilian surge" elements based?
- A U.S.-Afghan negotiating team is beginning to talk this week about NATO's post-2014 presence in Afghanistan. Should there be one? If so, for what purpose? The Center for a New American Security put out a call for transitioning to a Special Operations-led counterterrorism war after 2014. Do you agree with that? How many troops would be necessary for such an operation, and for how long?
- President Karzai's brother is calling for permanent U.S. bases in Afghanistan. Is that insanity, or the goal of the current bilateral negotiations?
- Did WikiLeaks' exposure of Afghans who cooperated with the U.S. lead to any actual deaths?
- Is success possible in Afghanistan -- by your definition -- without a Pakistani invasion of al-Qaeda safe havens in North Waziristan?
- If the Taliban say they won't negotiate peace with the Karzai government absent a U.S. commitment to withdraw, is that something the U.S. has to put on the table in order to bring the war to a close?
- OK, seriously: how many U.S. troops will you recommend bringing home come July? That's four months away -- can you really not say?
- How long do you plan on staying in this job? And are you looking for another assignment before retiring? Just asking...
Photo: ISAF
See Also:- Team Petraeus Brings Body Counts Back
