Reply #4: Call me crazy, but it seems to me that Kerry's presence there made [View All]

a big difference in negotiating, coupled with the pressure on Karzai that both Kerry and Rahm Emanuel engaged in on Sunday.

As to Gates, I am viewing this as a "Push/Pull" strategy, and I am thinking that Tay Tay may have a point that yes there is a "debate" going on in the Administration and members of Congress BUT this is not a major fight left vs. right dove vs. hawk kind of thing. The Gates statement may actually be an "assurance to Karzai" statement that no, Obama won't take too long to get the strategy in place. I seriously think the audience for all of this is the Afghan government, not an American audience which is far more focused on health care. Clinton seems to be in the "middle", which is the appropriate role for her at this point.