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November 19, 2009 (LPAC)—Lyndon LaRouche has been repeatedly clear that the United States should not engage in a ground war in Asia, but most public officials who oppose the Afghanistan quagmire have been too timid to say it. But in the last four days, opposition has been voiced by Gen. Wesley Clark (Ret. USA) to the House Armed Services Committee; by the 300-person executive board of the California Democratic Party (the largest Dem Party in the US); and by five members of the Progressive Caucus in a letter to Obama, who is reportedly going to make the decision about a troop increase when he returns from Asia.

* In testimony before the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, on Nov. 17, Clark stated, "You've got to figure out where you're going ... [and] how do we get out of here? Because our presence long term there is not a good thing. We're playing into the hands of people who don't like foreigners, in a country that's not tolerant of diversity. And that's not going to change." Clark, who was the former Supreme Allied Commander of US Forces in Europe, and a contender for the 2004 Democratic Presidential nomination, also said that there must be an exit strategy in place, if the U.S. were to increase the number of troops in Afghanistan. He said that Al Qaeda is not in Afghanistan—therefore a stronger relationship with Pakistan is what is needed there. Preventing Afghanistan from becoming a terrorist haven can be accomplished through diplomacy and many other means besides military, he said. Clark's testimony has gone largely unreported.

* "End the U.S. Occupation and Air War in Afghanistan" is the title of a resolution endorsed by the executive board of the California Democratic Party which met on Nov. 14-15. It calls for establishing "a timetable for withdrawal of our military personnel" and "an end to the use of mercenary contractors as well as an end to air strikes that cause heavy civilian casualties." In place of military presence, the resolution demands Obama "oversee a redirection of our funding and resources to include an increase in humanitarian and developmental aid." One of the those who spoke for the resolution was former Marine Corporal Rick Reyes, who served in Afghanistan. "There is no military solution in Afghanistan.... The problems in Afghanistan are social problems that a military cannot fix," he said, reported The Nation.

* Five members of the Progressive Caucus of Congress — Mike Honda (Calif.), Jim McGovern (Mass.), Raul Grijalva (Ariz.), Lynn Woolsey (Calif.) and Barbara Lee (Calif.) sent a letter to Obama stating, "We are concerned about committing additional US troops and taxpayer dollars ... especially when the US mission is unclear and when methods for measuring mission effectiveness are underdeveloped or nonexistent." Lee also proposed a bill to cut funding for the war in Afghanistan.