Obama Talks About Afghanistan and Pakistan Strategy

In an ideal world, Obama would say we're pulling out of there. But nope. Obama says we're on track to "achieve our goals" there. On the upside, Obama said we're on track to start pulling out troops in July. Robert Gates also expressed that the U.S. is staying focused on its goals -- what he calls a minimalist approach -- rather than being too ambitious and trying to fix all that's wrong with Afghanistan.
Read the report summary here.
SEE THE WHOLE BRIEFING HERE.

Gates and Mulllen Speak on McChrystal Video

I wonder if McChrystal thought about how much harder he made Robert Gates and Admiral Mullen's jobs before he made foolish remarks for public consumption.

The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said he was “nearly sick” when he read the magazine article that led to the resignation of Gen. Stanley McChrystal.

“I couldn't believe it,” Adm. Mike Mullen said at a Pentagon press briefing Thursday afternoon. “I was stunned.” The Hill

Hillary Clinton and Bob Gates on Meet the Press Dec. 6

This week's Meet the Press is on Afghanistan. David Gregory plays gotcha the whole way through. The media can't stop hammering on the timetable. There's no point in arguing about it now. Obama made the decision. There's a timetable. It's an easy concept to grasp. It's smart. John McCain, the anti-timetable point man, needs to get over it and move on. But republicans can't support Obama on anything-- not even on their favorite topic of war. The opposition to Obama is getting more and more irrational. Watch Hillary and Gates on This Week here.
Full episode:

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Obama Set To Address the Nation on Afghanistan Dec. 1

Update: Obama will speak at 8 pm eastern. If you're not near a TV, it will be live streamed at WhiteHouse.gov.

President Obama is expected to address the nation early next week, saying he will send a sizable force of additional troops to Afghanistan, sources tell NPR.

The tentative plan is for the president to make his announcement Dec. 1, followed shortly thereafter by testimony on Capitol Hill by Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Also expected to brief Congress is the top commander in Afghanistan, Gen. Stanley McChrystal. More at NPR

North Korea Stoking Tensions

UPDATE 4-4: North Korea launches. Read more here.
North Korea is getting testy, threatening to blow six party talks to end nuclear weapons testing, putting two U.S. journalists on trial and threatening war with Japan.
North Korea says it's launching a communications satellite between April 4-8. Japan says it's going to shoot it down and Robert Gates says the launch is a mask for development of a ballistic missile. Good grief.

WASHINGTON/SEOUL (Reuters) - A missile North Korea could launch as soon as this weekend appears to have a bulb-shaped tip that gives credence to Pyongyang's claim it plans to put a satellite in space, U.S. defense officials said on Tuesday.

Washington and others have voiced concern the launch will be a test of a long-range missile that could carry a warhead as far as U.S. territory. Pyongyang's plans have alarmed the region and intensified pressure on the North not to launch its Taepodong-2. A Taepodong-2 test in 2006 failed.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has said the launch, which North Korea says will occur between April 4 and 8, would deal a blow to six-party talks to end Pyongyang's nuclear weapons program.

Further stoking tensions, North Korea said on Tuesday it would put on trial two U.S. journalists arrested this month on its border with China.

The reclusive state accused the two female reporters, Laura Ling and Euna Lee from the U.S.-based media outlet Current TV, of unspecified "hostile acts."

"The illegal entry of U.S. reporters into the DPRK (North Korea) and their suspected hostile acts have been confirmed by evidence and their statements, according to the results of intermediary investigation conducted by a competent organ of the DPRK," North Korea's KCNA news agency said.

This from Bloomberg: 

North Korea accuses Japan of using the launch, scheduled to take place between April 4 and 8, as a pretext to build its own nuclear arsenal.

The North Korean news agency, in its statement, said, “The primary aim sought by Japan through this is to bring the six- party talks to collapse and delay the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula and thus justify its ambition for nuclear weaponization.”

U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates on March 29 called the launch “a mask” for development of an intercontinental ballistic missile by North Korea.

Gates Compares Obama and Bush

This segment of Meet the Press was fascinating (see the other segments here). David Gregory asked Robert Gates, defense secretary: what are the differences between Obama and Bush? Gates, who looked like he did some immediate censoring, said Obama is more analytical. Obama asks for everyone's input and if people don't offer it, Obama calls on them. Bush, on the other hand, didn't go out of his way to get input. Smart vs. ideology. 

Also, we'll probably see someone take Gates' place within Obama's first term. Gates appears ready for some R & R and book writing.

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