The Story Behind Obama's Decision on His New Afghan Strategy

The stories painted a picture of strong-willed military and civilian advisers who came to the table with significantly different approaches, ranging from Gen. Stanley McChrystal, whose request in September for 40,000 additional troops thrust the deliberations over Afghanistan into public view to the skepticism of Vice President Joseph Biden who one administration official described to the Times as the "bull in the China shop."

But a key shift in the process came when administration officials re-focused on what the strategy should be. The Post reported that McChrystal made his recommendation because he had believed his mission orders, as laid out by the White House in March, was to "Defeat the Taliban. Secure the population." National Security Adviser James Jones told the Post, "It was clear that Stan took a very literal interpretation of the intent" of the NSC document. ". . . I'm not sure that in his position I wouldn't have done the same thing, as a military commander . . . [but what McChrystal proposed] . . . was obviously something much bigger and more longer-lasting . . . than we had intended."

But Obama, concerned about what could mushroom into a $1 trillion commitment over ten years and the prospect of a long commitment, pushed the discussion in a different direction.

Pointing to a bell curve chart that showed the flow of reinforcements into Afghanistan over 18 months before a pullout would begin, Obama said, "I want this pushed to the left."

Both papers quoted Obama as saying, "What I'm looking for is a surge."

"When the history of the Obama presidency is written, that day with the chart may prove to be a turning point, the moment a young commander in chief set in motion a high-stakes gamble to turn around a losing war," said the Times. "By moving the bell curve to the left, Mr. Obama decided to send 30,000 troops mostly in the next six months and then begin pulling them out a year after that, betting that a quick jolt of extra forces could knock the enemy back on its heels enough for the Afghans to take over the fight."