Decision Points

2008, her followers won the elections soundly. They formed a government, and Musharraf stepped down peacefully. Asif Ali Zardari ,Bhutto’s widower, took his place as president. Pakistan’s democracy had survived the crisis.
    Over time, the Pakistani government learned the lesson of the Bhutto assassination. Pakistani forces returned to the fight in the tribal areas—not just against al Qaeda , but against the Taliban and other extremists as well. Yet more than a year had been lost, as Pakistan’s attention was focused on its internal political crisis. The Taliban and other extremists exploited that window of opportunity to increase their tempo of operations in Afghanistan, which drove up the violence and led many Afghans to turn against their government and our coalition. It was essential that we find a way to retake the offensive.

    By the middle of 2008, I was tired of reading intelligence reports about extremist sanctuaries in Pakistan. I thought back to a meeting I’d had with Special Forces in Afghanistan in 2006.
    “Are you guys getting everything you need?” I asked.
    One SEAL raised his hand and said, “No, sir.”
    I wondered what his problem might be.
    “Mr. President,” he said, “we need permission to go kick some ass inside Pakistan.”
    I understood the urgency of the threat and wanted to do something about it. But on this issue, Musharraf’s judgment had been well-founded. When our forces encountered unexpected resistance, they got into a firefight and made international news. “U.S. Commandos Attack Pakistan Sovereignty,” one Pakistani headline said. Islamabad exploded with outrage. Both houses of parliament passed unanimous resolutions condemning our action. No democracy can tolerate violations of its sovereignty.
    I looked for other ways to reach into the tribal areas. The Predator, an unmanned aerial vehicle, was capable of conducting video surveillance and firing laser-guided bombs. I authorized the intelligence community to turn up the pressure on the extremists. Many of the details of our actions remain classified. But soon after I gave the order, the press started reporting more Predator strikes. Al Qaeda’s number-four man, Khalidal-Habib, turned up dead. So did al Qaeda leaders responsible for propaganda, recruitment, religious affairs, and planning attacks overseas. One of the last reports I received described al Qaeda as “embattled and eroding” in the border region.
    We also stepped up our support for Pakistan’s democratic government. We provided money, training, and equipment, and proposed joint counterterrorism operations—all aimed at helping increase Pakistani capabilities. When the financial crisis hit in the fall of 2008, we took steps to make sure Pakistan received the assistance it needed to mitigate the effects of the recession and stay focused on fighting the extremists.
    One of my national security team’s last projects was a review of our strategy in Afghanistan. It was led by Doug Lute, a brainy three-star general who coordinated day-to-day execution of our operations in Afghanistan and Iraq. The report called for a more robust counterinsurgency effort, including more troops and civilian resources in Afghanistan and closer cooperation with Pakistan to go after the extremists. We debated whether to announce our findings publicly in the final weeks of my presidency. Steve Hadley checked with his counterpart in the incoming administration, who preferred that we pass along our report quietly. I decided the new strategy would have a better chance of success if we gave the new team an opportunity to revise it as they saw fit and then adopt it as their own.

    In December 2008, I made a farewell trip to Afghanistan . Air Force One landed at Bagram Air Base around 5:00 a.m., just ahead of the dawn. “I have a message to you, and to all who serve our country,” I told a hangar full of troops. “Thanks for making the noble choice to serve and protect your fellow Americans. What you’re doing in Afghanistan is important, it is courageous, and it is selfless. It’s akin to what American troops did in places like Normandy and Iwo Jima and Korea. Your generation is every bit as great as any that has come before. And the work you do every day is shaping history for generations to come.”
    I shook hands with the troops and boarded a Black Hawk helicopterfor the forty-minute flight to Kabul. Afghanistan is one of those places you have to see to understand. The