How is it that North Carolina has become a toss up / blue state the past few years?

[Lasher]

45. I'll bet Romney and the neocons would have us in Afghanistan for at least another decade.

US to defend Afghanistan for decade after drawdown

By Rob Taylor

KABUL | Sun Apr 22, 2012 6:21pm EDT

(Reuters) - Afghanistan and the United States on Sunday agreed on a draft of a long-awaited deal that will define the scope and nature of a U.S. presence in the country for up to a decade after the pullout of most NATO combat troops in 2014.

The U.S. Ambassador to Kabul, Ryan Crocker, and Afghan national security adviser, Rangin Spanta, initialed copies of the agreement, paving the way for President Barack Obama and his Afghan counterpart, Hamid Karzai, to review it.

"After much hard work together, we are pleased that we are close to completing negotiations on (the) Strategic Partnership," a U.S. Embassy spokesman in Kabul told Reuters.

-snip-

The deal, under negotiation now for more than nine months, comes at a time when relations between Washington and Kabul remain badly strained by a number of incidents involving U.S. soldiers that have infuriated public opinion.

[http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/04/22/us-afghanistan-agreement-idUSBRE83L07S20120422