Obama’s Afghanistan Trip Could Escalate Political Criticism By MICHAEL D. SHEAR
President Obama’s surprise trip to Afghanistan comes even as his re-election campaign has set off a heated debate about the propriety of using Osama bin Laden’s killing to make a political argument in the battle for the White House with Mitt Romney. The trip is designed to give Mr. Obama a fresh view of the war he inherited and expanded. The president plans to announce an agreement with the leaders of Afghanistan that will guide the deployment of American troops in the country as they transition out of the war over the next two-and-a-half years. But the timing of Mr. Obama’s visit to Afghanistan — and the address to the nation that he is scheduled to give Tuesday night — could add fuel criticism that he is politicizing the war on terrorism for his own political gain. Mr. Romney and his allies have already accused the president of inappropriately turning the anniversary of the raid on bin Laden’s Pakistan camp into a partisan attack by releasing a video that questions whether Mr. Romney would have authorized the raid. “Let’s not make the capture or killing of Osama bin Laden a politically divisive event,” Mr. Romney said on “CBS This Morning” on Tuesday. “There are plenty of differences between President Obama and myself, but let’s not make up ones.” Mr. Romney made those comments even as Mr. Obama was secretly flying to Afghanistan on Air Force One — a trip that was, as is standard, shrouded in secrecy because of the security risks of sending a president into a war zone. Such events are one of the biggest advantages of incumbency, giving a sitting president — in this case, Mr. Obama — the opportunity to appear presidential on a world stage. On Monday, Mr. Obama denied that he was making the bin Laden killing political, telling reporters at the White House that “I hardly think you’ve seen any excessive celebration taking place here.” In retrospect, Mr. Obama may have been obliquely referencing his upcoming trip when he suggested that it is not beyong the bounds of propriety for the country to mark the anniverary of bin Laden’s death. “I think for us to use that time for some reflection, to give thanks to those who participated, is entirely appropriate and that’s what’s been taking place,” Mr. Obama said on Monday. Still, the trip brings into sharper focus the debate that Mr. Obama’s campaign sparked with the internet video last week. The video raised the question of whether Mr. Romney would have made the decision to send the Navy SEALs into Pakistan had he been in the Oval Office. “Which path would Mitt Romney have taken?” the ad asks. Mr. Romney’s allies reacted furiously to that question over the weekend, insisting that Mr. Romney would have done the same as the president and chastising Mr. Obama for what they deemed an unfair political attack. One of the fiercest criticisms came from Senator John McCain of Arizona, who accused his one-time rival of trying to score political points out of a national security iniative that should be seen as bipartisan. “This is the same President who said, after bin Laden was dead, that we shouldn’t ‘spike the ball’ after the touchdown,” Mr. McCain said in a statement Friday. “And now Barack Obama is not only trying to score political points by invoking Osama bin Laden, he is doing a shameless end-zone dance to help himself get re-elected.” Mr. Romney and the president’s other critics will have to step gingerly as they deal with Mr. Obama’s visit to Afghanistan. In a statement on Tuesday, Mr. Romney praised the president’s actions a year ago today. “I commend all those who planned and conducted the bin Laden raid, and I applaud President Obama for giving the go ahead for the mission,” he said in a statement released by his campaign. But later in the day, Mr. Romney appeared in New York City with Rudy Giuliani, the former New York City mayor. Mr. Giuliani accused the president of using the September 11, 2001 attacks as negative campaigning, calling it “a mistake.” More: http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/05/01/obamas-afghanistan-trip-could-escalate-political-criticism/ -- Together, we can change the world, one mind at a time. Have a great day, Tommy -- Together, we can change the world, one mind at a time. Have a great day, Tommy -- Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups. For options & help see http://groups.google.com/group/PoliticalForum * Visit our other community at http://www.PoliticalForum.com/ * It's active and moderated. Register and vote in our polls. * Read the latest breaking news, and more.
