September 23, 2009 11:53AM 

# The Crystal Ball 

By [Malou Innocent](https://www.cato.org/people/malou-innocent) 

---

<a class="js-popover-trigger cursor-pointer popover-trigger" data-bs-placement="bottom" data-bs-trigger="click" id="popover-trigger"> 

SHARE 

</a> 

Some comforting [news](http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/23/world/asia/23policy.html?_r=2&ref=world) regarding the Obama administration’s approach to the war in Afghanistan:

> Among the alternatives being presented to Mr. Obama is Mr. Biden’s suggestion to revamp the strategy altogether. **Instead of increasing troops, officials said, Mr. Biden proposed scaling back the overall American military presence.** Rather than trying to protect the Afghan population from the Taliban, American forces would concentrate on strikes against Qaeda cells, primarily in Pakistan, using special forces, Predator missile attacks and other surgical tactics.

I’m an analyst, not a fortune teller, so anyone’s guess is as good as mine as far what course Obama will choose to take in Afghanistan. I will say, however, that I will not be surprised if the president decides to send more troops. For once I actually hope that he listens to Biden.

##### Related Tags 

[Defense and Foreign Policy](https://www.cato.org/defense-foreign-policy), [General](https://www.cato.org/general) 

[![Creative Commons License](/build/cato_2020/images/creative-commons.svg)](http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/) 
This work is licensed under a [Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/).