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Politics : PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: E. T. who wrote (648138)	10/19/2004 5:39:56 PM
From: Kenneth V. McNutt	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 769670

see Tommy Franks op-ed in the NY Times. It refutes all you say. Surprised the yellow rag. Times printed it. KM

To: E. T. who wrote (648138)	10/20/2004 10:18:36 PM
From: PROLIFE	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 769670

Tommy Franks: Hunting Osama Stick to facts when discussing Afghanistan 12:57 AM CDT on Wednesday, October 20, 2004 President Bush and Sen. John Kerry have very different views of the war on terrorism, and those differences ought to be debated. But the debate should focus on facts, not distortions of history. On more than one occasion, Mr. Kerry has referred to the fight at Tora Bora in Afghanistan during late 2001 as a missed opportunity. He claims that our forces had Osama bin Laden cornered and allowed him to escape. How did it happen? According to Mr. Kerry, we "outsourced" the job to Afghan warlords. As commander of the allied forces in the Middle East, I was responsible for the operation at Tora Bora, and I can tell you that the senator's understanding of events doesn't square with reality. First, take Mr. Kerry's contention that we "had an opportunity to capture or kill Osama bin Laden" and that "we had him surrounded." We don't know whether Mr. bin Laden was at Tora Bora in December 2001. Some intelligence sources said he was; others indicated he was in Pakistan; still others suggested he was in Kashmir. Tora Bora was teeming with Taliban and al-Qaeda operatives, many of whom were killed or captured, but Mr. bin Laden was never within our grasp. Second, we did not "outsource" military action. We did rely heavily on Afghans because they knew Tora Bora, a mountainous, geographically difficult region on the border of Afghanistan and Pakistan. It is where Afghan mujahedeen holed up for years, keeping alive their resistance to the Soviet Union. Killing and capturing Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters was best done by the Afghan fighters who already knew the caves and tunnels. Third, the Afghans weren't left to do the job alone. Special forces from the United States and several other countries were there, providing tactical leadership and calling in air strikes. Pakistani troops also provided significant help – as many as 100,000 sealed the border and rounded up hundreds of al-Qaeda and Taliban fighters. Contrary to Mr. Kerry, Mr. Bush never "took his eye off the ball" when it came to Osama bin Laden. The war on terrorism has a global focus. It cannot be divided into separate and unrelated wars, one in Afghanistan and another in Iraq. Both are part of the same effort to capture and kill terrorists before they are able to strike America again. Terrorist cells are operating in 60 countries, and the United States, in coordination with dozens of allies, is waging this war on many fronts. Neither attention nor manpower was diverted from Afghanistan to Iraq. When we started Operation Iraqi Freedom, we had about 9,500 troops in Afghanistan. By the time we finished major combat operations in Iraq in May, we had more than 10,000 troops in Afghanistan. We are committed to winning this war on all fronts, and we are making impressive gains. Afghanistan has held the first free elections in its history. Iraq is led by a free government made up of its own citizens. By the end of this year, North Atlantic Treaty Organization and American forces will have trained 125,000 Iraqis to enforce the law, fight insurgents and secure the borders. Many hurdles remain, of course. But the gravest danger would result from the withdrawal of American troops before we finish our work. We are asking our servicemen and women to do more, in more places, than we have in decades. They deserve honest, consistent, no-spin leadership that respects them, their families and their sacrifices. The war against terrorism is the right war at the right time for the right reasons. And Iraq is one of the places that war must be fought and won. George W. Bush has his eye on that ball, and Sen. John Kerry does not. Tommy Franks, a retired general and former commander of the Central Command who grew up in Texas, is the author of American Soldier. He is a member of Veterans for Bush. His e-mail address is admin@tommyfranks.com. dallasnews.com