SOMEBODY TELL SEAN HANNITY ABOUT AFGHANISTAN

In November, Insannity claimed on his radio show that Afghanistan was one of Pres. Fredo's great success stories. Now we learn that Fredo's own Secretary of Defense doesn't think so:

US Says al-Qaida a Worry in Afghanistan
Dec 4, 3:57 AM (ET)

By LOLITA C. BALDOR

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) - Defense Secretary Robert Gates plans to talk with NATO military leaders about increasing levels of violence in Afghanistan amid concerns by U.S. defense official that the reason may be an escalation of al-Qaida activity.

On his third trip to Afghanistan, Gates said he has not yet seen data on any uptick in al-Qaida activity, but increasing levels of violence in the country are clear and that he plans to talk about it with other defense leaders from NATO nations operating in Afghanistan.

"I'm not worried about a backslide as much as I am (about) how we continue the momentum going forward," Gates told reporters in Djibouti on Monday before he left for Kabul. "One of the clear concerns that we all have is that in the last two or three years there has been a continuing increase in the overall level of violence."

This year has been the most violent since the U.S.-led invasion of Afghanistan in 2001. Insurgency-related violence has claimed nearly 6,200 lives, according to a tally of figures from Afghan and Western officials.