McCain Afghanistan War Plan
During a town hall meeting in Albuquerque, New Mexico, on July 15, 2008, John McCain commented that a strategy similar to the troop surge implemented in the Iraq War is needed to succeed in the Afghanistan War.1
The comments were made prior to McCain's departure for Iraq and Afghanistan on a fact-finding mission.2
Fast Facts
- Comments made on July 15, 2008
- Made during a town hall meeting
- Meeting held in Albuquerque, New Mexico
- Partly a response to comments made by Barack Obama
- Obama has argued the Iraq War is "a distraction" from the Afghanistan War3
- Obama said that Afghanistan is the "central front" in the War on Terror3
- McCain maintains that Iraq is important to the War on Terror4
- McCain argues that the troop surge has been successful4
- McCain is waiting until he returns from a fact-finding mission to unveil the details of his plan for Iraq and Afghanistan4
Quotes
"[Barack Obama] was wrong when he said we've lost the war, and he is wrong today when he says that Iraq is not the central battleground...that's what Gen. Petraeus says and that's what Osama bin Laden says, that Iraq is the central battleground. We are winning there and his proposals would jeopardize the fragility of the success we've achieved. And his refusal to acknowledge that success is remarkable."2—John McCain, CBS News
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