Kucinich: Afghans want to be saved from us, not by us

In an address to the nation on Tuesday, President Obama declared, “As commander in chief, I have determined that it is in our vital national interests to send an additional 30,000 troops to Afghanistan. … After 18 months, our troops will begin to come home.” For Congressman Dennis Kucinich (D-OH), however, if the ultimate goal is to get out of Afghanistan, then the sooner the better.

“Why are we still in Afghanistan?” Kucinich asked on the floor of the House of Representatives on Wednesday morning. “Al-Qaeda has been routed. Our occupation fuels a Taliban insurgency. The more troops we send, the more resistance we meet.”

“The people of Afghanistan don’t want to be saved by us,” Kucinich continued. “They want to be saved from us. Our presence and our Predator drones kill countless innocents, creating more US enemies and destabilizing Pakistan.”

Kucinich has been expressing opposition to a “surge” in Afghanistan since last spring, regularly insisting that at a time of economic crisis the money being spent on war would be better applied to basic needs back home.

When General Stanley McChrystal asked in September for more troops, Kucinich issued a statement saying, “If the Obama administration is determined to ‘win the war’ in Afghanistan, then we should be prepared for another Vietnam. An unending military commitment is unacceptable to the American people and it should be unacceptable to Congress. If the Obama administration refuses to bring this war to an end, then Congress should use the power of the purse, granted by the Constitution, to end the war and bring our troops home.”

“We’ve played all sides in Afghanistan and all sides want us out,” Kucinich concluded on Wednesday. “They don’t want our presence, our control, our troops, our drones, our way of life. We’re fighting the wrong war, in the wrong place at the wrong time. What part of “get out” do we not understand?”

This video is from C-SPAN, broadcast Dec. 2, 2009.

Download video via RawReplay.com