Almost everything about Afghanistan was troubling Mullen. As Obama was giving intense focus on the war, Mullen was feeling more personal responsibility. Afghanistan had been marked by ‘incredible neglect,’ he told some of his officers....

Maybe that would be less crucial under Obama, Podesta thought, because Obama’s approach was so intellectual. He compared Obama to Spock from Star Trek. The president-elect wanted to put his own ideas to work. He...

McChrystal had organized a jaw-dropping counterterrorism campaign inside Iraq, but the tactical successes did not translate into a strategic victory. This was why counterinsurgency – blanketing the population in safety and winning them over –...

I’m done doing this!’ Obama said, finally erupting. ‘We’ve all agreed on a plan. And we’re all going to stick to that plan. I haven’t agreed to anything beyond that.’The 30,000 was a ‘hard cap,’...

Finally, the president added, ‘The American people are idealists, but they also want their leaders to be realistic…

…Obama said, ‘I welcome debate among my team, but I won’t tolerate division.

During an hour-long conversation mid-flight, he laid out his theory of the war. First, Jones said, the United States could not lose the war or be seen as losing the war.’If we’re not successful here,’...

Obama had campaigned against Bush’s ideas and approaches. But, Donilon, for one, thought that Obama had perhaps underestimated the extent to which he had inherited George W. Bush’s presidency – the apparatus, personnel and mind-set...