Retired General Tommy Franks responds to the Kerry/Edwards accusation that Bush/Cheney "Outsourced" the capture of Osama Bin Laden to Afghan warlords.

I was talking with my business partner this morning about President Bush. I argued that one of the qualities that I wished the President had is better salesmanship. Don't get me wrong... Integrity comes first and I believe the President has that in spades, but a salesman he is not. A good salesman can sell you something you don't want and make you glad you bought it. A lot of people didn't want this war on Terrorism, and they don't understand the vital necessity of the war in Iraq. President Clinton, as much as I hate him for the way he handled the military and our military obligations, as much as I think that he is enormously responsible for much of the state of terrorism today because he did NOT meet his military obligations... President Clinton would have been able to sell this war, this need, to the citizenry and the world beyond.

Not that he would have had the integrity to deem it important. He would have shuffled it under the rug as best he could.

Just imagine, if you will, if President Bush could have framed the argument that Retired General Tommy Franks made today during the first Presidential Debate:

On more than one occasion, Senator Kerry has referred to the fight at Tora Bora in Afghanistan during late 2001 as a missed opportunity for America. 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 to this day whether Mr. bin Laden was at Tora Bora in December 2001. Some intelligence sources said he was; others indicated he was in Pakistan at the time; still others suggested he was in Kashmir. Tora Bora was teeming with Taliban and 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 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 Qaeda and Taliban fighters.

Contrary to Senator Kerry, President 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, potentially with weapons of mass destruction. Terrorist cells are operating in some 60 countries, and the United States, in coordination with dozens of allies, is waging this war on many fronts.

Hat Tip to Little Green Footballs

Posted by Michael at October 19, 2004 11:16 AM