Obama's WarsIn Obama’s Wars, Bob Woodward provides the most intimate and sweeping portrait yet of the young president as commander in chief. Drawing on internal memos, classified documents, meeting notes and hundreds of hours of interviews with most of the key players, including the president, Woodward tells the inside story of Obama making the critical decisions on the Afghanistan War, the secret campaign in Pakistan and the worldwide fight against terrorism. At the core of Obama’s Wars is the unsettled division between the civilian leadership in the White House and the United States military as the president is thwarted in his efforts to craft an exit plan for the Afghanistan War. “So what’s my option?” the president asked his war cabinet, seeking alternatives to the Afghanistan commander’s request for 40,000 more troops in late 2009. “You have essentially given me one option. ...It’s unacceptable.” “Well,” Secretary of Defense Robert Gates finally said, “Mr. President, I think we owe you that option.” It never came. An untamed Vice President Joe Biden pushes relentlessly to limit the military mission and avoid another Vietnam. The vice president frantically sent half a dozen handwritten memos by secure fax to Obama on the eve of the final troop decision. President Obama’s ordering a surge of 30,000 troops and pledging to start withdrawing U.S. forces by July 2011 did not end the skirmishing. General David Petraeus, the new Afghanistan commander, thinks time can be added to the clock if he shows progress. “I don’t think you win this war,” Petraeus said privately. “This is the kind of fight we’re in for the rest of our lives and probably our kids’ lives.” Hovering over this debate is the possibility of another terrorist attack in the United States. The White House led a secret exercise showing how unprepared the government is if terrorists set off a nuclear bomb in an American city—which Obama told Woodward is at the top of the list of what he worries about all the time. Verbatim quotes from secret debates and White House strategy sessions—and firsthand accounts of the thoughts and concerns of the president, his war council and his generals—reveal a government in conflict, often consumed with nasty infighting and fundamental disputes. Woodward has discovered how the Obama White House really works, showing that even more tough decisions lie ahead for the cerebral and engaged president. Obama’s Wars offers the reader a stunning, you-are-there account of the president, his White House aides, military leaders, diplomats and intelligence chiefs in this time of turmoil and danger. |
From inside the book
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... Iraq and Afghanistan, and defend the nation. “John, sorry,” McConnell said. “I'd love to be able to accommodate, but I didn't make these rules.” He related Bush's instructions—only the president-elect and anyone designated to take a top ...
... Iraq and Afghanistan, and defend the nation. “John, sorry,” McConnell said. “I'd love to be able to accommodate, but I didn't make these rules.” He related Bush's instructions—only the president-elect and anyone designated to take a top ...
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... Iraq. The NSA had argued that it was one of the most powerful capabilities in the world, so it had been used with the utmost care and restraint in order to avoid starting a cyber war. The NSA's offensive capability, called Computer ...
... Iraq. The NSA had argued that it was one of the most powerful capabilities in the world, so it had been used with the utmost care and restraint in order to avoid starting a cyber war. The NSA's offensive capability, called Computer ...
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... Iraq War, not least among them the president-elect. Only months earlier, candidate Obama had visited Petraeus in Iraq. According to Obama, he told the general, “My job, if I have the honor of being commander in chief, is going to be to ...
... Iraq War, not least among them the president-elect. Only months earlier, candidate Obama had visited Petraeus in Iraq. According to Obama, he told the general, “My job, if I have the honor of being commander in chief, is going to be to ...
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... Iraq wars. Over the two previous years as the Iraq commander, Petraeus had led the efforts that turned the war around, stabilizing the country and dramatically reducing violence. This was a result of the “surge” of 30,000 more troops ...
... Iraq wars. Over the two previous years as the Iraq commander, Petraeus had led the efforts that turned the war around, stabilizing the country and dramatically reducing violence. This was a result of the “surge” of 30,000 more troops ...
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... Iraq and Afghanistan wars. His appointment was in part an insurance policy taken out by the Bush administration in hopes of avoiding a precipitous withdrawal from Iraq. Gates again showed up to hail Petraeus as “the preeminent ...
... Iraq and Afghanistan wars. His appointment was in part an insurance policy taken out by the Bush administration in hopes of avoiding a precipitous withdrawal from Iraq. Gates again showed up to hail Petraeus as “the preeminent ...
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