WASHINGTON - December 1 - I am deeply disappointed that President Obama is expected to announce tonight that he is escalating the war in Afghanistan, bringing the number of U.S. troops in that country to 100,000 or more.  In the midst of a severe economic recession, we should be nation- building at home, not in Afghanistan. According to the White House’s own Budget Director, adding an additional 30,000 troops to Afghanistan will cost an additional $30 billion. That is in addition to the $130 billion already budgeted for Iraq and Afghanistan. That money should be spent where it is needed - creating jobs for the 10% of Americans who are unemployed.

Congress will hear from the President tonight. Every member of Congress needs to hear from their constituents starting tomorrow. Congress needs to know that our men and women in uniform should not be sent to die to prop up a corrupt and incompetent government that was caught stealing the last national election. And they should listen to the many respected military and national security experts who say that increasing the U.S. military footprint in Afghanistan will fuel the insurgency, not end it.

The president’s own National Security Advisor has reported that there are fewer than 100 al Qaeda operatives in all of Afghanistan with no ability to launch attacks on either the United States or our allies. Al Qaeda operatives could be operating in Yemen or Somalia. Does that mean that we should be preparing for a military occupation of those countries?

Congress must decide whether spending $100 billion a year to have 100,000 troops chasing 100 terrorists in Afghanistan is really in our national interest.

The argument that we need to occupy Afghanistan in order to prevent the return of al Qaeda is an example of what has been aptly described as a twentieth century response to a twenty-first century problem. The fact is that al Qaeda does not need territory or large bases to launch attacks on the United States.  They need only access to the Internet, safe houses and an ample supply of martyrs.

The hawks inside and outside of the administration have weighed in and the President has made his choice. Now it is time for the American people to weigh in and for Congress to provide a badly needed check and balance on a deeply flawed and potentially catastrophic decision.