The anti-decider.

Obama was quite clear during the campaign about Afghanistan.

Earl Ofari Hutchinson wrote in August of this year:

In August 2007 Senator Barack Obama fresh on the presidential campaign trail made an impassioned promise at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars to wage what he dubbed the war that has to be won. The war is the war in Afghanistan.

The rest of Mr. Hutchinson's piece discusses Obama's commitment to Afghanistan and seeing the dangers through. It assumes (and was written just three weeks ago) that Obama meant his promises on Afghanistan.

Today, literally days later, there are questions all around as to Obama's intent. Most pointedly from the Washington Post which expressed serious concern that Obama is waffling on statements about the war he made in March.

I've felt for a while that Afghanistan would subsume health care as the main issue this Fall. Obama has to make a decision on troop levels and funding soon. On this issue I assumed he'd keep his campaign promises. He'd sell Afghanistan as the war that must be won. Now it appears he's stalling. McCrystal's report is nearly a month old. Obama has had one meeting with his national security team in the interim. One.

We are often told by the MSM that Obama has a lot "on his plate". This is true. He's got health care speeches, global warming speeches, speeches to unions, vacation time, Sunday chat shows, promos to tape for George Lopez's show on TNT, Letterman....still one has to wonder what he's up to in delaying a decision on Afghanistan. Is it a slow, deliberate process - as the White House insists? Has he decided more troops in Afghanistan is now a bad idea and needs to break it to the Generals (that he appointed) slowly? Is he being driven by polls showing the war in Afghanistan is increasingly unpopular? Is he playing the Left wing of his party for a few popularity points until health care is further along?

I do not know.

Here's are my thoughts on the matter - Obama is bad at making decisions. He's the anti-decider. He seems to avoid it. He punts where ever he can. The stimulus bill, cap and trade, health care, the 30 or so czars he's appointed are all examples of Obama shoving off the heavy lifting to others. It's only in the last few weeks that he's injected himself forcefully into his central domestic policy issue. Even then - his presence has consisted mostly of making speeches and appearing on TV shows. There is scant evidence that' he's committed deeply to any one part of health care reform. There is no line in the sand beyond a bill...any bill.

War is different for Presidents. The buck can't stop somewhere else. Presidents lead wars. If they go well they become national icons: Lincoln, FDR, Truman. If they do not they are vilified: LBJ, Nixon, George W Bush. There's no escaping the constitutional provision making the President the Commander in Chief.

Personally, I'm torn about Afghanistan. I supported the invasion in the Fall of 2001. Since then much time, wealth and blood has been wasted. Is an outcome we can live with even feasible any longer? Conversely, we can't allow the Taliban a free pass to return to power.

I'm allowed ambivalence. I'm not the President.

Whatever Obama does he may yet end up being clear and decisive. But so far his "deliberation" looks like fear.