Hoyer: We Took Our Eye Off The Ball In Afghanistan

By Justin Duckham-Talk Radio News Service

Prior to the White House’s scheduled meeting Tuesday afternoon with Congressional leadership, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) declined to tell reporters if he would support sending more U.S. forces to Afghanistan.

“I intend to give my advice and counsel to the president first,” said Hoyer during a pen and pad session. “I have some views and I’ll probably express them sometime in the future after I meet with the president.”

However, the Majority Leader did offer his explanation for the origin of the troubled military situation in Afghanistan.

“This is an effort that ... we should have succeeded on years ago. We took our eye off the ball. We under-resourced the effort that had almost unanimous support,” Hoyer said.

The Majority Leader refused to speculate over whether Congress would be behind a troop increase, stating that while there is support for the action in the House, he was not sure if it is the majority’s opinion.