Udall: President’s Decision is Best for Troops and Future of Afghanistan Mission
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Mark Udall gave the following statement in response to President Obama's decision to relieve General Stanley McChrystal and replace him with General David Petraeus:
"I believe the president made the necessary decision in the best interests of our mission in Afghanistan and of our more than 90,000 men and women involved in that tough fight. As he said, this war is bigger than one man. We need to ensure that all parts of our strategy in Afghanistan are working together. I'm concerned about how a change in command will affect our operations at a critical time, but I am confident that bringing in General Petraeus - who is known to the American public, to the Afghanistan and Pakistani governments, to our NATO allies, and to our soldiers, and who wrote the military's counterinsurgency manual and implemented the Iraq surge - is the right decision. The Senate should swiftly move to confirm General Petraeus in this new role."