Back in the US after a high profile visit to the warzone, Rep. Rick Larsen (D – WA) condemned Afghan President Hamid Karzai, saying that he came out of an hourlong private conversation with the US-backed president “disturbed.”
Larsen Larsen spent the bulk of his summary praising the Obama Administration for the escalation of the war in Afghanistan as well as for the pledge to eventually withdraw the troops from the nation, saying he was “reasonably assured that Afghanistan will not be a safe haven for al-Qaeda.”
Officials in the Karzai government have angrily condemned the calls to fight corruption, with National Security Adviser Spanta calling it a “bad joke” and insisting that it is a distraction from the “central issues” of the war.
This Rep. Larsen looks like a nice fellow, but he does NOT look like a person of sufficient gravitas to cajole an Afghan President to produce anything more than MMMs and AAHs and vague assurances that "we" will do "everything we can do" to end these reprehensible practices" (that have been going on for more than two thousand years) as soon as is practical. "And isn't the CIA bribing our politicians"??
Why was this Rep. from Washington over there lecturing Karzai..?? That role it seems should be played by someone a bit higher up the food chain…. Karzari and the U.S. representatives for the military and executive are probably annoyed by the Larson appearance in Kabul hectoring Karzai to do something about the "grease" that keeps the whole show rolling.. A fools errand in the end.. No wonder Rep Larsen is "troubled"… Really, the whole NATO effort is troubling…
Just let the Taliban come back. Heads will roll (literally) and all the foul corruption of Karzai and his boys will be washed away.
Who will really blame with that mess?
Jane
CIA asset playing the role of Afghanistan's "president" seems to forget he is supposed to act the part only and do as told by his masters, occupiers and invaders.
In hearing the criticisms of Karzai coming from every conceivable quarter of the governing class against a similar background of another American war going bad, I hope it occurs to Karzai to remember what happened to the Diem brothers.