Newt Gingrich Praises Obama's 'Political Courage' On Afghanistan

CINCINNATI — Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich is praising President Barack Obama for showing political courage on Afghanistan.

The Georgia Republican said Wednesday that Obama's plan to send 30,000 extra troops to Afghanistan is the right step, and that Tuesday's speech at West Point showed the president was facing reality.

"If you are a liberal Democrat who won the nomination with the support of the anti-war left, this had to be one of the most difficult decisions he'll ever make," Gingrich said. "And he did what he felt was right for the country.

"I think he knew when he did it he was going to split his own party, and I think that took considerable courage on his part," he said.

But Gingrich predicts that Obama will have trouble pulling out troops in 2011, and that there will still be U.S. troops both in Afghanistan and Iraq in 2012.

Gingrich spoke to reporters before leading a town hall meeting on job creation on the eve of the president's job forum Thursday in Washington. Hundreds turned out at a downtown hotel to hear Gingrich promote cutting taxes and reducing government to stimulate job creation.

Bob Mlinar, who owns a Cincinnati beverage drive-through with five employees, said he wanted less government interference with small businesses.

"That's what's frustrating," Mlinar said.

Gingrich told his audience that people have gone too long without facing the truth by running up debt and buying homes they can't afford.

"It all starts with being honest," he said.

His American Solutions group billed the session as "the real jobs summit," and Gingrich will follow it with another on Thursday in Jackson, Miss. Considered a potential 2012 GOP presidential candidate, Gingrich said he plans to crisscross the country next year holding similar forums.

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http://www.americansolutions.com

Comments

[Elbrando]

11:29 AM on 12/03/2009

Does anyone know the definition of "faint praise"?

[Bonwell Parker]

10:24 AM on 12/03/2009

What always made Gingrich so dangerous to his adversaries is that he can create the image of being fair and neutral while heavily pushing a specific agenda. This new wave of neocons who just end up vilifying people and shrinking their tent into irrelevance should take some cues from this guy if they want to return to power.

Remember, this was a man who was able to wrest control from the President's party in a time of peace and prosperity. That's a hell of an accomplishment.

[biabouman41]

10:02 AM on 12/03/2009

And health care reform and Iraq and the bailout and the stimulus and more to come. He shows the kind of nerve we were all hoping for. He is not necessarily going 100% in my direction, but he shows nerve on the number and variety of issues tackled by his administration in just 10 months.

[doubtingdavid]

09:24 AM on 12/03/2009

Using liberal logic, if Newt endorses something Obummer is doing, Obummer must be doing something wrong.

[rabiddog6708]

08:59 AM on 12/03/2009

Hey, Obama, keep up the good work in Afghanistan. And thanks for your continued support.


Sincerely,

Dubya, Rummy, Wolfy and Condi

P.S. Thanks for not signing on to that anti-landmine treaty, too. I like it when they go b00m!

[PaulLee]

07:53 AM on 12/03/2009

Would someone please explain to me why pulling out of Afghanistan and leaving it to the Taliban is going to make the world and particularly America more secure ? No one seems to dispute that under the security provide by the Taliban, Osama Bin Laden was able to train terrorists and plan his attacks. True, a lot of that planning occurred in Germany and indeed America itself but Afghanistan was the base of operations. Why would one not seek to deny Afghanistan as a future base of operations.

Is there an alternative ? I accept all the arguments that the presence of foreign forces inflames the situation. I accept all the arguments that the Afghan government is corrupt, incompetent etc. But even if there was no increase in troops, is it really feasible to cut and run as some seem to suggest. ?

You may not want to but sometimes you have got to fight.

[rabiddog6708]

09:01 AM on 12/03/2009

We are in our 9th year there? Just long do you want to stay? Bin Laden and his cronies do not need Afghanistan for training ground as they are world wide. We do not have the billions of dollars it takes every year to keep troops there.

[biabouman41]

10:09 AM on 12/03/2009

Never mind denying them a base, you just have to kill the leaders. That is what Bush and Cheney failed so miserably at in 2001. They had that opportunity but apparently wanted more the benefit that flowed from keeping the image of terrorism out there.

[barksalot]

07:46 AM on 12/03/2009

What political courage. The left has nowhere else to go or turn to except hold onto the coattails of the President. His timetable for leaving was a feeble attempt at appeasement.

[PrairieView]

07:29 AM on 12/03/2009

Why wouldn't Newt and Karl Rove approve of Obama's War escalation?

Obama=Bush III

[Nelson Montana]

07:20 AM on 12/03/2009

First Al Gore wins the Nobel Peace Prize for making a slide show. Then Obama wins it for making speeches.

This week we find out Gore's findings may not be scientifically accurate and Obama calls to go to war.

I love politics. It's so absurd.

[clemenj98]

11:56 AM on 12/03/2009

Oh please. The "ClimateGate" scandal does NOT undo every piece of evidence out there that shows climate change is real. One scientist admitted to using the most convincing data in one graph. Talk about absurd.

[Nelson Montana]

03:56 PM on 12/03/2009

There's always been climate change. In the last 10 years in some parts of the Northeast we've had some of the coldest seasons in decades. There have been record lows. I'm not denying the science involved in GW but even Gore admits there's little that can be done about it until the auto industry (here and abroad) make drastic changes -- which they will not do until they sell the crap they have now. And no one is going to make them.

[JiminNC]

04:35 AM on 12/03/2009

No doubt Gingrich's straw hut and bicycle are paid for ...

[carl99e]

12:39 PM on 12/03/2009

Speaking of "paid for" did Newt ever pay back the $300,000.00 he borrowed from Senator Dole to pay for the fine imposed on him by his fellow congressman?????? Just wondering.

[nakedhand]

03:59 AM on 12/03/2009

Another great indicator that this new plan is a real bad idea.

[DrPaulProteus]

03:38 AM on 12/03/2009

Yeah Newt because usually Presidents are so reluctant to make more war...

[CaliTLC]

03:24 AM on 12/03/2009

He's suspect.

[Sam418]

03:01 AM on 12/03/2009

Political courage? Maybe he didn't do it for politics, Newt. Not everybody merely positions themselves like you do.

[randy44]

01:43 AM on 12/03/2009

Chris Mathews said it on purpose to get attention.