President sets course in Afghanistan

President Obama
President Obama announced his plans for increasing troop levels in Afghanistan and, at the same time, his plans for drawing down U.S. involvement there.
Read the transcript, see the speech, read excerpts at the White House web site.
A sampling of reporting:
ANALYSIS: With speech, president makes the conflict truly his own
Dan Balz in The Washington Post, December 2, 2009
OPINION: Surge, then leave
David Ignatius in The Washington Post, December 2, 2009
OPINION: Obama offers right choice in difficult situation
Steve Coll in The New Yorker, December 2, 2009


