Surge, aka, escalation, in the Afghanistan War

The McCain escalation (The Surge) worked so well in the Iraq War, why not try it in Afghanistan?

From 101st Airborne Moves Into Afghanistan; Troop Levels Reach Record High Since Invasion by Jason Straziuso Fort Worth Star-TelegramAP 04/10/08

The 101st Airborne Division took command of American forces in eastern Afghanistan on Thursday, helping to boost U.S. troop levels in the country to their highest number since the 2001 invasion. ...

The 101st has 7,200 troops in Afghanistan, several hundred more than the 82nd. Its arrival, coupled with the deployment of some 3,500 Marines to the country's south, has pushed the total number of U.S. troops in Afghanistan to over 32,000, part of a steady rise in force levels as violence has increased over the last two years.

The top American commander in Afghanistan has requested three more brigades - about 7,500 more troops — and the Pentagon has promised that more troops will be sent next year.

With these troop numbers, we have to keep a couple of things in mind. One is that mercenaries from Blackwater or other companies are not included in these counts. The other is that Rummy ran an off-the-books group of some number of soldiers that weren't reported in the official numbers; if that's still going on, those would not be included in official counts.

Tags: afghanistan war