President Obama Arrives in Afghanistan on Unannounced Trip

President Obama Arrives in Afghanistan on Campaign mode taxpayer paid Unannounced Trip.(NYC).President Obama made an unannounced visit to Afghanistan on Friday as he sought to smooth over a troubled relationship with President Hamid Karzai and take stock of a nine-year-old American-led war that he hopes to begin winding down next summer.
Mr. Obama planned to travel to Kabul and head to the presidential palace to meet with Mr. Karzai, who has complained vocally about American military tactics in recent weeks. The president also planned to consult with his commanding general and visit American troops heading into another holiday season far from home. But due to weather concerns, the president is expected to stay at Bagram Air Field and conduct meetings from there.
Wrapped in a tight security cocoon, Mr. Obama is scheduled to be on the ground only for several hours in his second trip in nine months to a country ravaged by war. But his arrival came at critical juncture as he and other NATO allies are putting in place a transition plan intended to hand over control of the battlefield to Afghan forces starting in the new year with the hope of formally ending foreign combat operations there by the end of 2014.
Mr. Obama’s administration is also in the midst of conducting its own review of the counterinsurgency strategy he approved a year ago when he ordered the latest surge of troops that brought American forces to about 100,000, or roughly triple the number there when he took office 22 months ago. Gen. David H. Petraeus, the commander of American and NATO forces, has highlighted signs of progress, but others have expressed skepticism.Mr. Obama’s plane touched down even as State Department cables obtained by the group Wikileaks and made available to a number of news organizations laid out a devastating portrait of a society awash in corruption and graft that has been fostered by Mr. Karzai’s own government. The cables questioned whether Mr. Karzai will ever be “a responsible partner” and depicted him as “erratic” and “indecisive and unprepared.”The president plans to fly to Bagram Air Base afterward to meet with U.S. troops and then address the nation at 7:30 p.m. ET.

The 10-minute speech is expected to discuss the Afghanistan war as well as the upcoming NATO summit in Chicago. Bin Laden's death is expected to come up in the speech but is not expected to be the focal point.Hmmmmm.........Come and see the man who shot "Liberty Valance"?Read the full story here.