Matt Bruce
Afghanistan v. Chicago
October 3, 2009

Does anybody other than me see where our priorities have gone with the Chicago Olympics bid?

For example, ever since Gen. Stanley McChrystal became the Commanding Officer in Afghanistan, he has been telling there would be a report forthcoming about what additional items he would need to defeat the Taliban and al-Qaida in Afghanistan.

Rumors have been circulating for weeks about 40,000 more troops plus more hi-tech equipment like our predators to be used in hunting down the enemy.

Our President, Barack Obama, even made the Afghanistan War one of his "priorities" in defeating those who attacked us on 9/11/2001. But has this been the case? Let's look at the facts.

Move America Forward was severely dismayed to see President Barack Obama taking an ill-advised trip to Copenhagen, Denmark, to promote Chicago in their failed bid to host the 2016 Olympics, rather than address the safety of our troops in Afghanistan. Not to mention that this is another example of Obama being shunned by foreign leaders despite trying to placate them at every turn.

Does anybody remember the interview on CBS where he told Katie Couric, he "criticized President George W. Bush for not staying focused on our mission in Afghanistan?" Obama is guilty of the same thing now. He took his “eye off the ball” by going to Denmark when he should have stayed home and addressed the requests of his top military commanders and given our troops in Afghanistan the resources they need to defeat those who are sworn to our destruction.

This is the wrong time for Obama to be trotting around the globe in an unsuccessful promotion of his friends in Chicago to host an Olympics that won’t even happen until 2016. Meanwhile while he's doing this, our troops in Afghanistan wait to find out whether or not they will get the support they need from the White House. This is wrong, plain and simple.

Now, let's look at the cost involved here by both the City of Chicago in attempting to get the Olympics there and what it cost for President Obama, his wife and their entourage to travel to Copenhagen, Denmark.

It has been widely reported in the local Chicago newspapers that up to $48 million has been spent in advertising, attending and promoting Chicago in their attempt to get the Olympics. This can be verified in numerous ways by just using Google to look up the Chicago Olympics in 2016.

Then we have the issue of President Obama, his wife Michelle, Oprah Winfrey, Jesse Jackson, Chicago Mayor Richard Daley and others flying on 2 Air Force Planes with complete Secret Service Security detachments to go to Copenhagen.

Just based on the preliminary estimates from the USAF stats previously reported when the President of the United States makes a trip to Europe, any rational person could 'easily' come up with a $10 million price tag for the planes and the security, not counting the hotel accommodations, food and beverage for such a trip.

Now ask yourself, could we AFFORD to waste some $50+ million of our tax and corporate dollars to go after something we were not guaranteed we'd get?

How about the City of Chicago being so "disappointed" they didn't get the Olympics in 2016? Does anybody know what they were planning on doing with the East Chicago Low Income Housing Units that are in terrible condition? Well let me tell you what was going to take place.

Some of the land as well as these pre-mentioned Housing Units were going to be torn down to make way for a new Olympics Village which would have made SOME of Pres. Obama's Chicago friends millions and millions of dollars. Can you say payback???

So far President Obama has put off making decisions about Afghanistan. The 20,000 Troops who were sent into Afghanistan earlier this year had been put in place by the former President, George W. Bush, and President Obama decided to leave that order in tact.

In addition, the White House has changing the Rules of Engagement and ordered a cease to bombing ahead of ground troops moving in, which kills and suppresses terrorists who are lying in wait to ambush our troops.

Without air support, it makes our troops more vulnerable and it is increasing American casualties to placate those that would have us fail in Afghanistan. The enemy hides amongst their own women and children, we know that and that's a fact.

This is a haunting reminder of Viet Nam when are troops hands were tied by self serving politicians and were not allowed to use the tools of war that would have led to victory. We won the Battles but lost the War in Vietnam because of our politicians.

President Obama claims he is evaluating the strategy in Afghanistan. Oh really? Is that why it took several months to call a hastily arranged meeting with Afghanistan Commanding Gen. Stanley McChrystal aboard Air Force One on a European tarmac?

Obviously, this is not what he was doing all week while unsuccessfully preparing and pitching Chicago to Olympic officials in Denmark costing the City of Chicago and the USA millions of dollars. Shouldn’t the welfare of our American troops come first?

I believe that giving our brave men and women in the Military the support they need to win the war in Afghanistan is more important than taking care of your old political friends and cronies from your days in the state legislature.

Is anybody listening, does anybody agree? If so, the time has come to stop the madness and get America's priorities right!

Do you want to fight the Terrorist's over there or would you rather fight them in our cities and towns over here?

The answer is simple, you make the call and then let the White House know you 'deplore' not putting America's Military first and destroying the enemy that is sworn to our destruction.

That's just my opinion...