Advisors say Obama doesn't size up to McCain on Afghanistan

Experts discussed the Afghanistan policies of Barack Obama and John McCain during a conference call. Following Obama's recent foreign policy speech, the experts referred his record on the Afghanistan issue.

Rep. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) said that McCain was able to come up with a strategy in Iraq that worked. Randy Scheunemann, a senior foreign policy advisor for the McCain Campaign, questioned the timing of Obama's foreign policy speech. Scheunemann noted that it is strange for Obama to discuss Middle East foreign policy when the senator has not visited Iraq in 900 days, has never been to Afghanistan, or met privately with Gen. David Petraeus.

Kori Schake, another senior foreign policy advisor for McCain, outlined McCain's strategy in Afghanistan. McCain will work with allies to make sure their is unity of leadership, appoint an Afghanistani official to better organize U.S. policy, and increase the amounts of troops by three brigades, Schake said. Two brigades would be for combat and one would be for training, Scheunemann said. McCain will also increase non-military assistance, such as counter narcotics strategy and regional diplomatic issues.

Scheunemann said Obama contradicted himself when he said that 10,000 to 20,000 additional troops would make no significant difference back in 2007, but then, in January 2008, argued that he said more troops would be beneficial. Obama has a commitment to leave Iraq, but not to win, Scheunemann said. Obama, as Chairman of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, chose to cut off funding for Afghanistan despite never holding a hearing about it.

Obama lays out his five-fold national security plan

Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama gave a speech on U.S. foreign policy, national security and strategy in Iraq at the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington D.C. Obama was introduced by Wilson Center director Lee Hamilton who started jovially referencing an incident where Obama had to show ID at a DC gym.

Obama began his speech with a historic reference to the Marshall plan quoting from General Marshall's speech about rebuilding enemy nations, "What is needed? What can best be done? What must be done?"

The junior Democratic senator criticized the governmental response to Sept. 11 listing things "We could've done." He described the war in Iraq as one "that had nothing to do with the 9/11 attacks." He advocated a national security strategy that goes "not just in Baghdad."

He outlined his national security policy based on five points: "ending the war in Iraq responsibly; finishing the fight against al-Qaida and the Taliban; securing all nuclear weapons and materials from terrorists and rogue states; achieving true energy security; and rebuilding our alliances to meet the challenges of the 21st century."

Obama defended his position on ending the war in Iraq. "George Bush and John McCain don't have a plan for success in Iraq. They have a plan for staying in Iraq." He defined victory as leaving Iraq to a sovereign government that can care with its people and an enemy whose power cannot reemerge. He laid out a redeployment plan for U.S. forces to leave Iraq by 2010. He said he would shift power to Afghanistan putting two more combat brigades in Afghanistan as well as non-military aid.

He also called to stop "bankrolling the ambitions for Iran," by purchasing foreign oil. He classified global warming as a national security issue. He also called for an increase in foreign assistance to $50 billion for development as a means of security.

Shades of green: Obama, McCain advisors on energy policy

The energy policies of Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) and Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) were discussed at a conference hosted by the National Journal. In addition, panelists discussed their views of the political climate for legislative action in the coming congress.

Elgie Holstein, senior adviser to the Obama Campaign on energy, stated that both McCain and Obama have endorsed a cap and trade approach to controlling greenhouse gas emissions, believing it to be the most economically friendly way to meet strict greenhouse gas emissions limitations that the campaign is hoping will become a part of national policy. However, the candidates differ in how aggressive they plan to be. Obama hopes to see a reduction of 80 percent below 1990 levels in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, while McCain would aim for a 60 percent reduction. In addition, Obama plans to auction off credits to companies that choose to continue polluting. Money from these auctions would be used to develop clean-energy technologies and underwrite the labor costs of transitioning to this new technology. McCain would not charge for these pollution credits, though would consider following a plan similar to Obama's years from now.

Douglas Holtz-Eakin, domestic policy adviser to the McCain campaign, described McCain's intention of focusing on the vulnerabilities to our economy, environment and national security that our nation's reliance on foreign oil has caused. Holtz-Eakin stated that this reliance puts us at the mercy of leaders who do not share the same values as the United States, including Vladimir Putin and Hugo Chavez. As such, McCain advocates new oil and gas development on US shores, though not in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR). He also favors research into new technologies to ease this dependence. Conversely, Obama is opposed to offshore exploration, favoring higher auto emissions standards along with a windfall profits tax on oil companies.

Despite their different policy preferences, Holstein noted that for the first time both Democrats and Republicans have acknowledged that environmental issues can no longer be ignored.

Today at Talk Radio News

News Director Lovisa Frost will attending President Bush's press conference about the housing and financial markets. Correspondent Dawn Jones will be covering Missile Defense Agency director Lt. Gen. Henry A. "Trey" Obering III's briefing on missile defense. Chief United Nations correspondent Dan Patterson will be covering Sudan updates and a panel discussion on Small Arms Trade and Children and Armed Conflict.

The Washington Bureau will be covering Barack Obama's speech on Iraq and national security, a press conference where House and Senate Republican leaders will be accepting a petition signed by 1.3 million Americans, a Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee Aviation Operations, Safety, and Security Subcommittee hearing on "The Outlook for Summer Air Travel: Addressing Congestion and Delay", a discussion with astronauts the of the STS-124 Space Shuttle crew, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer's news briefing, a House Judiciary Committee hearing on "The Google-Yahoo Agreement and the Future of Internet Advertising", a Transportation Security and Infrastructure Protection Subcommittee hearing on "The Next Step in Aviation Security - Cargo Security: Is DHS Implementing the Requirements of the 9/11 Law Effectively", and The Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe's hearing on "Guantanamo Detainees After Boumediene: Now What?"

McCain, Obama advisors spar over economy, taxes

Economics, tax cuts, social security and health care dominated a discussion held by the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) today looking at how the next president will pay the nation’s bills. AARP, which is the nation’s largest lobbying organization, held the forum with policy advisors for both Senators McCain and Obama. The discussion was moderated by Wall Street Journal Economics Editor David Wessel and also featured Diane Lim Rogers from the Concord Coalition and John Rother with AARP.

Douglas Holtz-Eakin, Senior Policy Advisor with the McCain campaign wasted no time in attacking Sen. Obama for his health care proposal and how he would finance it. Holtz-Eakin said “Senator Obama has made the promise that every American should have health care comparable to Congress. That’s about $7,000 for an individual, $12,000 at the moment for a family plan. There are about 50 million uninsured if you multiply 7,000 times 50 million you get 350 billion dollars and that money has to come from somewhere and so far there is no explanation as to where.” Holtz-Eakin added that the Obama campaign needs to “show me the money.”

But Jeffrey Liebman with the Obama campaign stated that McCain’s plan is “bottom up economics.” In reference to the social security debate “Sen. Obama thinks that pay as you go social security is probably the greatest invention on the domestic side in history and it’s certainly not disgraceful,” said Liebman.

Liebman added that the McCain campaign put out an economic plan in which they said the Obama campaign cannot afford our benefit promises to seniors. But Liebman says that Obama “does believe we can choose to meet our benefit promises to seniors.” Liebman added that Obama believes the best way to handle social security is “in a bipartisan way,” and that the place to start in paying for it is “to have the people that can most afford it contribute more revenue.

In closing on a central campaign theme, Holtz-Earkin seemed to criticize both parties for failing to deliver results. “This country is not just tired of eight years of the Bush Administration. It is tired of a Congress that fails to deliver and it is tired of politicians who cannot rise above their party or narrow political ambitions to put the country first,” said Holtz-Earkin.