Skeptical

This deliberation, this proclivity to absorb all the options, which makes John McCain batshit insane and Dick Cheney choke on the blood that fills his mouth, is one of the central reasons Obama was elected. And in Afghanistan (if anon-sourced reports can be trusted), he appears to be asking the obvious question: How does this thing end?

As Mr. Obama convened his war council for 2 hours and 20 minutes on Wednesday, the final session before departing for a trip to Asia on Thursday, he suggested he was not satisfied with his options. It was the eighth Situation Room meeting in the last two months on Afghanistan and Pakistan, and officials said Mr. Obama pressed for clarifications on a series of questions.

Where are the off-ramps for the military? What is the exit strategy? When will Americans and their allies hand responsibility to the Afghanistan government? Can the Afghan government improve its credibility?

I find that encouraging.