The $9 Billion Spring Offensive

Congress recently attached a condition that the executive branch certify that Pakistan is moving toward democracy for $1 billion of this year's $10 billion aid package.

Perhaps it should quickly revisit the other $9 billion and attach another condition...that Pakistan cease providing safe havens to militants killing Afghan and Allied soldiers in Afghanistan.

The new "ceasefire," orchestrated by Sirajudin Haqqani, insurgent tribal leader and lead killer of US soldiers in Paktya, Paktika, and Khost provinces, with Baitullah Mehsud, darling of "retired" ISI colonels and accused killer of Benazir Bhutto, should give us pause. Haqqani is licking his lips as he prepares for a spring offensive in which he can attack Afghan and US forces from within a Pakistani border only respected by, well, us and the Afghans (who admittedly wouldn't respect it if they had the power not to).

Why should we give Musharraf a blank check to do nothing except prepare for war with India and suppress democracy? We do this at the expense of making most Pakistanis hate us as we prop the stage of our string-less puppet.

We can't overtly kill terrorists on Pakistan soil for our rent check, and we can't get the Pakistani military to engage in effective operations against the Taliban or Al Qaeda. Nor can we even get them to stay on their side of the border while their military provides excellent vantage points for Afghan and foreign fighters.

Kip hopes Congress and the Administration have good reason to believe that our money and blood are buying protection from Pakistan's nuclear weapons as we facilitate the destruction of both Afghanistan and Pakistan.