Today, the Senate Armed Services Committee held the confirmation hearing of General David Petraeus to serve as commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan.  General Petraeus was nominated for this post after the ouster of General Stanley McChrystal by President Obama following a very public disagreement between the president and the general on future plans for Afghanistan.

While the sudden departure of General McChrystal is regretful, I am very pleased with the selection of General Petraeus and believe he will succeed in this new position.  General Petraeus has continuously exemplified leadership and dedication to his country as Commander of the U.S. Central Command and as commanding general of U.S. forces in Iraq.  The war in Afghanistan has been challenging, but we have seen much progress of late.  I thank the Senate Armed Services Committee for their speedy confirmation of General Petraeus and strongly encourage the full Senate to quickly confirm him as well so we can continue our progress in Afghanistan.