MET WITH AFGHAN PRESIDENT KARZAI AND WITH GEN. MCCHRYSTAL, COMMANDER OF INTERNATIONAL FORCES

Washington, Dec 30, 2009 - Rep. Cliff Stearns (R-Sixth) left on Saturday, December 26th for Afghanistan on a trip he organized for the House Air Force Caucus and is returning to the United States on Thursday, December 31st. “I wanted to go during the Holidays to let our men and women in the armed forces know that we appreciate their sacrifice,” said Stearns. “In addition, we wanted to get input from the forces and government officials in the field on the surge approved by President Obama.”

Stearns, a veteran of the U.S. Air Force, joined in establishing the House Air Force Caucus and serves as the group’s co-chair. Joining Stearns on the trip are Reps. Brian Higgins (D-NY), Steve Israel (D-NY), Jerry McNerney (D-CA), Dan Maffei (D-NY), Mike Pence (R-IN), Aaron Schock (R-IL), and Ed Whitfield (R-KY).

On Monday, December 28th, Stearns visited the Parliament of Afghanistan and then had a private meeting with President Karzai. A meeting with Gen. Stanley McChrystal*, the commander of U.S. and international forces in that nation, followed. In addition, Stearns met with the troops and joined them for dinner.

“In talking with the troops I found that the morale is high and that the surge is welcomed as a positive step to help them complete their mission,” said Stearns. “However, my discussion with President Karzai underscored that the government is hampering progress and I urged him to focus on reforming his government an addressing its rampant corruption. General McChyrstal outlined for us the broad plans for employing the surge to roll back the insurgency and to improve overall security in that country. The General is an inspiring leader and he boosted our confidence that this new strategy moves us in the right direction. The consensus seems to be that success or failure will be determined over the next 18 months or less and largely hinges on securing the city and province of Kandahar in the south.”