Obama's Unexpected Visit to Kabul

On Sunday, Barack Obama landed in Kabul for an unannounced visit, his first trip to Afghanistan as president. On his brief trip he met with Afghan President Hamid Karzai and his cabinet and praised their campaign against insurgents, saying “Progress will continue to be made, but we also want to make progress on the civilian front," and emphasized anti-corruption efforts. Karzai said his country would “move forward into the future.” The two will likely continue this discussion—Obama invited Karzai to Washington on May 12. According to a White House official, Obama wanted to get an “on the ground update” about the war from General Stanley McChrystal. With the health care victory in his pocket, Obama finally has political space to turn his attention abroad and see early results regarding his 30,000 troop increase in December.