Support for the Afghanistan War is Low

Just 39 percent of Americans support their nation’s military engagement in Afghanistan, the lowest figure since the start of the war. Above all, Democrats – Barack Obama’s own party – disapprove of U.S. involvement. This is becoming increasingly problematical for the president.

Public reaction to the unpopular engagement in Afghanistan is the same on both sides of the Atlantic. First, uneasiness begins to creep in; then come serious doubts and the doubts gradually harden into rejection. War-weariness has also reached government leadership levels in the USA and opposition to the war – a war Obama made the centerpiece of his foreign policy – continues to grow. His party members are now distancing themselves from his position.

A CNN opinion poll made public last Tuesday shows a mere 39 percent of Americans support the campaign in Afghanistan, the lowest level since the start of military operations in the fall of 2001. The decline has accelerated in recent months: in April, fully 53 percent of those polled said they felt U.S. military operations in Afghanistan were justified.

In the latest poll, 58 percent now say they are against the war. Most support for involvement comes from Republicans, who approve of U.S. involvement by 62 percent. Obama’s own party members have a bigger problem with the war with only 23 percent expressing support.

The increasing number of casualties may have affected support for involvement. 51 U.S. soldiers were killed in Afghanistan during the month of August, the highest number since the war began. Support is also further eroded by government corruption in Afghanistan and charges of election fraud following presidential elections there.

The “Wrong Time” for a Troop Surge

There is considerable disagreement among Democrats concerning a possible increase in U.S. troops in Afghanistan. A doubling of troop strength to 68,000 by year’s end is already a done deal, but the military commanders have left no doubt that they will ask for more, something hard for Democrats to accept in view of expected voter dissatisfaction with the controversial health care reform proposal.

Obama’s party finds it increasingly difficult to support a war that is obviously losing public support. A few days ago, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi sent a clear warning to her colleagues in the White House saying “I don’t think there’s a great deal of support for sending more troops to Afghanistan in the country or in the Congress.”

Democratic Senator Dick Durbin shared that opinion saying, “I think at this point sending additional troops would not be the right thing to do.” Senator Carl Levin, influential Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, wants to shift more duties to the Afghan army before the United States considers sending in more troops.

Experts warn of the danger that Obama may fall victim to his own ambitions in Afghanistan. Political advisor Aaron David Miller of the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington says Obama is making a dangerous mistake in striving for victory in Afghanistan where no victory is in sight. “Obama has given people the impression he can solve this problem,” Miller said. “The reality is that we’re nation-building there when we can’t even pass health care reform at home.”

Former security advisor and prominent Democratic guru Zbigniew Brzezinski also warned Obama against a troop surge in a conflict where there may be little or nothing to gain. He warned in the Financial Times that Obama would run the risk of failing in his foreign policy goals and instead would risk “sliding into a deeper conflict with various segments of the world of Islam.” Obama defended his position on Tuesday saying “You never step into the same river twice. And so Afghanistan is not Vietnam.”

Meanwhile, the White House has put a possible troop surge on hold. Press secretary Robert Gibbs noted that formulating a future strategy “could take weeks.”

It is possible that Obama is trying to protect his party, currently locked in a bitter struggle over health care reform and showing deep divisions between the left and right factions. The divisions could well be exacerbated by disagreement over Afghanistan. An official briefing by Afghan commander General Stanley McChrystal is scheduled for next week, after which Obama will have to make his decision and show he is capable of enforcing it.