Cliff Stearns Shifts After Bin Laden's Death, Calls For Serious Reexamination Of Afghanistan War

WASHINGTON -- Rep. Cliff Stearns (R-Fla.) wants the United States to seriously reevaluate its commitment in Afghanistan and work on bringing troops home as soon as possible. His new stance is perhaps the strongest opinion shift by a lawmaker in the days following Osama bin Laden's death.

In March, Stearns voted against Rep. Dennis Kucinich's (D-Ohio) resolution to withdraw troops from Afghanistan by the end of the year.

But a Monday blog post on the website of the Florida Times-Union quoted Stearns as saying, "Most people I talk to say that we need to address our nation's budget deficit, and we are spending a lot of money" in Afghanistan. "Now that bin Laden has been executed we must go home."

But in a statement to The Huffington Post, Stearns said the Times-Union post created a misconception that he wants U.S. troops to come home immediately.

"Our forces have been involved in Afghanistan for nearly 10 years and we need to focus on reducing our presence there and bring our troops home," he said. He also cited the cost of operations in Afghanistan, saying, "We just can’t afford it with a deficit of $1.5 trillion." But he noted, "I do not advocate ending our involvement immediately and any drawdown should be based on conditions on the ground."

When asked whether bin Laden's death was a factor in Stearns' new position, a spokesman confirmed that it was.

"We should reevaluate our commitment there given the death of bin Laden, the toll on our troops, and our budget situation," Stearns added in a second statement. "In other words, we need to come home sometime, and the sooner the better."

During debate over a withdrawal bill in March 2010, Stearns -- who was a strong supporter of the surge -- chastised colleagues who wanted to leave Afghanistan prematurely: "The President of the United States has indicated he wants to stay there for 18 months. Why won't his opponents just allow the President to have the opportunity to fulfill his own commitment that he's made publicly?"

WATCH:

Stearns' call to reexamine the U.S. commitment in the war is significant given his opposition to Kucinich's resolution, but other lawmakers also joined in questioning Afghanistan policy in the wake of bin Laden's death.

House Armed Services Committee member Rep. Tim Griffin (R-Ark.), who has spoken out against a withdrawal timetable, said he was impressed by the bin Laden mission, which involved a targeted, limited strategy rather than a large ground war.

"You get a better result by using focused forces in a tactical way like this, and you're able to root out bad actors such as Osama bin Laden," Griffin said.

Sen. Richard Lugar (R-Ind.) has been seriously questioning the U.S. commitment in Afghanistan for some time, and at a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on Monday, he made some of his strongest comments to date.

"[N]early a decade later, with al Qaeda largely displaced from the country, but franchised in other locations, Afghanistan does not carry a strategic value that justifies 100,000 American troops and a $100 billion-per-year cost, especially given current fiscal restraints," he said in his prepared remarks.

Longtime advocates of withdrawal are also renewing their calls in light of bin Laden's death. On Wednesday, Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.) and five members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus sent a letter to President Obama calling for a significant and sizeable reduction in U.S. troops in Afghanistan. Out of Afghanistan Caucus Chair Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.) also sent Obama a letter on Monday arguing that bin Laden's death gives new momentum to ending the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"Bin Laden's death is the beginning of the endgame in Afghanistan,” a senior administration official told the Washington Post. "It changes everything."

Comments

[chayne schaetzle]

01:51 PM on 05/06/2011

With the majority of recent polls showing the U.S public is ready for an end to this war ASAP, its surprising we don't hear more congressmen/women bringing up an accelerated withdraw from Afghanistan. That just goes to show that the majority of politicians don't care to listen to the general public and just do things according to their own agendas.

[Chezzo]

08:15 AM on 05/06/2011

I think we need to get out of this land war if freaking Asia, too! Sure, if you need to clean up for 18 months, fine.

But this war costs a lot. It costs millions a day. An economics teacher once told me that if it was your job to make a mark on a chalkboard, it would take 60 years to make a million marks. We spend millions a day.

It's costing our young men and women. It cost me a cousin. What has it cost you?

[MalleusMaleficarum]

03:05 PM on 05/05/2011

Stearns is only the first, but he will not be the last member of Congress to connect the dots between wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the burgeoning deficit-national debt. Bring the troops home - Now!

[Blackwing]

10:15 AM on 05/05/2011

These Republican crooks want to destroy Medicare but their big spending on the War Machine will never cease.

[bhawkes328]

10:34 AM on 05/05/2011

Hey blackbrain i mean blackwing i do believe the dems are running things now wake up

[Cabotool]

06:02 PM on 05/07/2011

I got a notice from Medicare that they were requesting my medical provider to return $471 that had been overpaid to my provider. I called Medicare and they said that lack of funds meant they had to cut their payments. Medicare is already being destroyed.

Peter Robinson Age 75

[Duane7]

09:43 AM on 05/05/2011

Time to cut our losses and bail on Afghanistan. It's time to save this country from financial ruin. We simply can't afford the cost of running Afghanistan and here at the same time. Mission accomplished and all that, Rah, Rah, let's move on to the rebuilding of this nation.

[Dennydorite]

09:39 AM on 05/05/2011

Starting a war with a country that posed no real threat to us was stupid beyond belief. A special ops force could have dealt with Bin Laden and saved countless lives but macho man Bush had to find some poor hapless country to punish for his failure to take 9/11 warnings seriously. Do you think the electorate has learned its lesson about putting an imbe*cile in the White House? Take a look at the GOP lineup if you think you can answer yes.

[Erdgeist]

09:33 AM on 05/05/2011

We were either in Afghanistan to capture OBL or to secure it so that a pipeline could be built through Afghanistan going to Pakistan, India and the Gulf of Oman which would take oil and gas from the Caspian Basin worth some 12 trillion dollars. If the former, it is time to leave. We have already spent over 400 billion dollars in Afghanistan.

[Sergeant]

09:19 AM on 05/05/2011

With the demise of bin Laden a critical element of our involvement in Afghanistan is now gone. Al Queda is still active but isn't there in any significant degree. How do we know? Because terrorists and insurgents do not fight face to face. The hit and retreat, or attack strategic targets and then withdraw. Right now we are fighting the same people who fought invaders thousands of years ago. And, oddly, the sooner we leave the more likely they will be our friends instead of our enemies.

[smalljaws]

09:15 AM on 05/05/2011

Getting out of Afghanistan should be a bipartisan slam dunk. Declare victory and get out. It'll be interesting to watch the neo-cons fabricate reasons to stay. A new doomsday scenario is probably already in the works.

[raffa657]

08:56 AM on 05/05/2011

In GOP terms isn't rep Stearns a flip-flopper.

[bushitbrain]

08:53 AM on 05/05/2011

Why is it that the politicians who are supposed to Represent The People are always oblivious to the Will of The People, especially Repugs when it comes to things military ??! As much as they foam at the mouth over this & that petty prospect at reducing moneys wasted, here is $100 Billion per yr ($250 Million per Day !), yet they have this Macho-Hawk identification with War, as if that is supposed to favorably contrast them with Wimp-Peacenik Demos, to their gain come election time.
The majority of Americans want to GTFO Afghanistan ASAP, the economy desparately depends upon it, & all the Repugs can think about is an `election-erection'. Well, Rep. Stearns has called the Repugs out on their BS, & if they follow the people, they will follow his lead.

[Sergeant]

09:21 AM on 05/05/2011

True enough that there are plenty of saber rattlers on the right.

Question: Who got us into Libya?

[Dennydorite]

09:41 AM on 05/05/2011

Comparing Afghanistan with Libya? Get real.

[missmanners]

11:26 AM on 05/05/2011

Are we Actually in Libya?

"Our military is stationed all over the world. But there is a difference between contingent­s and brigades of fighting troops."

[melobster78]

08:40 AM on 05/05/2011

Wow! I never thought I would say this, but for the first time I agree with a Republican!!! Get the troops out of there and back home STAT!

[Ironquill]

08:22 AM on 05/05/2011

Florida, huh? On every street corner there are two pharmacies and two senior health care providers. I guess the Ryan plan isn't seen as very good for the economy or for politicians who endorse it.

[Mikeeee]

07:21 AM on 05/05/2011

Here's an idea, withdraw the 50,000 left in Iraq and close the bases. Of course can't do that, have to be around to protect the oil companies interest.

[TDano]

08:27 AM on 05/05/2011

Our military protects all of our interests from allies to Chinese goods. American countries do business everywhere and it important for our military to keep all areas as stable as possible to ensure prices and products remain consistent. We don't even get that much oil from Iraq. It's just a bunch of Dem hype created to work against Bush.

[smalljaws]

09:00 AM on 05/05/2011

Let Big Oil hire Blackwater or some other mercenary group to protect their interests. The robber barons had Pinkerton's to do their dirty work. With record profits and low taxes they can afford to provide their own security.

[nirek]

07:06 AM on 05/05/2011

Well it's not like me to agree with the GOP, but if they want to bring our troops home , I AGREE!