We can't afford to make the same mistake again.

Every day we spend in Iraq, we are diverting our best assets from the main fight against Al Qaeda’s central headquarters in Pakistan and Afghanistan. This July’s National Intelligence Estimate told us that Al Qaeda has “regenerated key elements of its Homeland attack capability”—its ability to attack us here—because it has a new safe haven for its top leadership and operational lieutenants in Pakistan. And if you are wondering about Al Qaeda’s priorities, just today, bin Laden declared war on the government of Pakistan. The Bush escalation in Iraq has not protected our homeland: Where there was previously no threat from Al Qaeda in Iraq, we have created one. Where there was a real threat, in Pakistan and Afghanistan, we have not done nearly enough to extinguish it. John Kerry, 2007

Iraq has made America less safe. The terrorists are not on the run. Terrorist acts tripled between 2004 and 2005. Al-Qaeda has spawned a decentralized network operating in 65 countries, most of them joining since 9/11. Only Dick Cheney could call this a success. The situation in Afghanistan deteriorates steadily. The Taliban now controls entire portions of southern Afghanistan, and across the border Pakistan is one coup away from becoming a radical jihadist state with nuclear weapons. Only George Bush could declare this “mission accomplished.” John Kerry, 2006

We will never be as safe as we should be if Iraq continues to distract us from the most important war we must win—the war on Osama Bin Laden, Al Queda, and the terrorists that are resurfacing even in Afghanistan. John Kerry, 2005

My fellow Americans, the most urgent national security challenge we face is the war against those who attacked our country on September 11th, the war against Osama bin Laden and Al Qaida. John Kerry, 2004

First, destroying al Qaeda and other anti-American terror groups must remain our top priority. While the Administration has largely prosecuted this war with vigor, it also has made costly mistakes. The biggest, in my view, was their reluctance to translate their robust rhetoric into American military engagement in Afghanistan. They relied too much on local warlords to carry the fight against our enemies and this permitted many al Qaeda members, and according to evidence, including Osama bin Laden himself, to slip through our fingers. Now the Administration must redouble its efforts to track them down. And we need to pressure Pakistan to get control of its territories along the Afghanistan border, which have become a haven for terrorists. John Kerry, 2003

Kerry Pushes for Fortification in Afghanistan to Fend Off Impending Taliban offensive Resolution Seeks to Concentrate Troops at War on Terror's Center

WASHINGTON -- Sen. John Kerry introduced his “Afghanistan Sense of the Senate Resolution” today, heeding the calls of the commanders on the ground in Afghanistan who are urgently asking for more troops to fend off an impending Taliban offensive. The bill also seeks to prevent any troops stationed in Afghanistan from being siphoned from Taliban strongholds to support the White House escalation of the war in Iraq. Kerry argued that sending more troops into the middle of civil war in Iraq against the advice of our military commanders, and at the expense of a fortification in Afghanistan, would be a grave mistake.

“For too long, this White House has ignored the growing resurgence of the Taliban in Afghanistan,” Kerry said. “Our own generals tell us that the Taliban is freshly emboldened, the instability and corruption are still major problems, that opium production continues to increase, and that our forces on the ground in Afghanistan are stretched beyond all reasonable limits. Rather than looking at whether he can move troops from Afghanistan to bolster a misguided effort in Iraq, he should be surging troops and economic assistance into Afghanistan where the original 9-11 terrorists masterminded their attacks on U.S. soil.”
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Six years ago, President Bush vowed that bin Laden would be brought to justice "dead or alive". Six years later, he's still falsely tying bin Laden to his misguided war in Iraq, while ignoring the threat of a nuclear Pakistan in turmoil. Does he even know or care? As long as there's a question, we will listen to the tapes and watch the news coverage and wonder why, after six years, we still don't have an answer.