Obama Brings Congress Into Afghan Strategy Review

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• JIM LEHRER:

  President Obama brought Congress into his strategy review on Afghanistan and Pakistan today. He invited more than 30 leaders from both parties to the White House.

  NewsHour correspondent Kwame Holman has our lead story report.

• KWAME HOLMAN:

  The gathering at the White House was part of the president's ongoing strategic review. Hours before the meeting, Mr. Obama addressed counterterrorism workers and reaffirmed his long-term goal for Afghanistan and beyond.

• U.S. PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA:

  It should now be clear. The United States and our partners have sent an unmistakable message: We will target al-Qaida wherever they take root; we will not yield in our pursuit; and we are developing the capacity and the cooperation to deny a safe haven to any who threaten America and its allies.

• KWAME HOLMAN:

  The ground commander in Afghanistan, General Stanley McChrystal, wants to achieve that goal with thousands more troops.

  JOSEPH BIDEN, vice president, United States: You are warriors of the first degree.

• KWAME HOLMAN:

  Vice President Biden and others favor targeting al-Qaida militants in nearby Pakistan.

  The situation got an airing with the lawmakers at today's meeting. Democratic leaders praised the president for taking his time and consulting, but they echoed concerns by many on their side about sending more troops.

  REP. NANCY PELOSI, D-Calif., speaker of the house: The question that the leader put forth at the beginning — and General McChrystal said in his report — without a strategy, we shouldn't resource the mission. So the question is: How do we evaluate the tools at our disposal? Do we have an able partner in President Karzai? Is the government capable of acting in a way that is not fraught with corruption?

  REP. STENY HOYER, D-Md., house majority leader: The president indicated that he was going to make this decision in a timely fashion, which I think everyone thought was appropriate, and a considerate fashion. I don't want to make further comments about the substance of that conversation, but I thought it was a positive conversation. The president obviously is taking this very, very seriously and is going to further consult with members of the Congress and with his military leaders and determine what decision he thinks is appropriate.

• SEN. JOHN KERRY, D-Mass.:

  We have to understand exactly what is possible to achieve here. And I think a lot of senators and congressmen need to question themselves about how much money they're prepared to put on the table to support that, for how long a period of time, and for what strategy. There are serious questions about, you know, Pakistan's relationship to what we do in Afghanistan. There are questions about the Taliban. And until those questions are satisfactorily answered, I think it would be irresponsible to make the choice about committing people to harm's way.

• KWAME HOLMAN:

  On the other hand, Republicans said they are ready to support the president if he asks for more troops, and they urged him again to act.