The greatest test before President Barack Obama is not health care or other domestic issues, but the Afghanistan War and the Middle East. Every President has a defining moment to stamp his presidential identity on world history. Many will agree that President Obama's decision going forward on the present war in Afghanistan will be a critical juncture in American history. It will be a decision that once is finalized will determine America's political and military stance in the Middle East in addition to several consequential results which may have great impact on a worldwide scale.

In the past weeks there has been much political and media clamor about what will be this administration's decision involving the war in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Rather than micromanaging the steps of our president, we must be cognizant on what the latent defects are from this administration's opponents. The urgency of these decisions requires all Americans to support President Barack Obama with our prayers. The decisions made will affect all of our lives - from the economy, to the lives of our children, and the future stability of this nation.

The continuation of the war and the addition of forty thousand troops suggested by General Stanley McCrystal involves two issues which have dire outcomes either way we analyze it. For the progressive political thinkers, McCrystal's formula for more troops does not necessarily constitute victory. The other group, the conservatives, has already created the spin that President Barack Obama is incapable of making America safe. Because the President has not made a decision about Afghanistan, the Republicans see this as weakness and have vilified his inability to be the Commander-in-Chief. This erroneous rationale was created by former Vice President Dick Cheney from the inception of Obama's presidency. Unfortunately, Liz Cheney, a self-proclaimed political pundit and daughter of Dick Cheney, is speaking the thoughts and words of her father. She, along with others, is working vigorously to create a political framework of why forty thousand troops are necessary to keep America safe. On a conspiratorial level, the extreme right wing’s politicized themes have been supported by the infamous media venue of Fox News. It is the same old tired rhetoric offering the average American citizen plausible solutions. It leads to deception.

The Afghanistan government’s instability gives good reason for a dilatory decision by our president. I call this wisdom leading to pragmatic measures that are being adopted by the Obama administration. President Barack Obama is thinking about the war in Afghanistan with a multitude of counselors at his side for the purpose of safety. Many opposing groups have become critical only because their thinking rest on a superficial foundation birthing an opportunist moment to gain political points. They forget that President Obama's main concern is how America will promote nation-building in Afghanistan, protect our national interest, and ensure America's safety from terrorism. As it currently stands, it would be poor judgment to send our troops in harm’s way just to appease those on the political right. Pragmatism over ideology, the use of multilateral decision making over unilateral, diplomacy over pre-emptive reactions are but a few variables which come into play when reviewing the Middle East. Another important reality is that all terrorist groups seek rogue nations as fertile ground for them to increase their control over the lives of many innocent people. For now Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Somalia are such nations.

In the coming months, we will see some key nations renege on their promises to be supportive to America. They will move away from America because of fear and their own self- interest. The prayers of the righteous are asking for God's protection. The question remains. Who are the righteous?