American Morning
McCain supports Obama's plan, for the most part
Top Republicans are weighing in on President Obama's prime time address last night.
Senator John McCain attended a White House briefing yesterday on the new Afghanistan strategy, and today he says he supports the president's decision – mostly. Sen. McCain spoke to John Roberts on American Morning Wednesday with his reaction to the speech.
Washington (CNN) – President Barack Obama's opponent in last year's election says he supports the president's buildup of troops in Afghanistan, but Senator John McCain believes laying out an exit strategy is a mistake.
"If you say there's a date certain for withdrawal, your friends and enemies who will be in the region make accommodations accordingly," McCain said.
During Tuesday night's prime time address laying out his Afghanistan troop buildup, President Obama said that a troop withdrawal could begin as early as July 2011.
McCain said Wednesday in an interview on CNN's American Morning that Obama "gave an excellent speech and I think the policy, although it's very extended period of deliberation which is now behind us, is a good one, and I'm confident the president will do exactly as he says."
Republicans in focus group praise Obama's Afghan speech
As one might expect, some Americans who listened to President Obama's Afghanistan speech last night liked it while others didn't. As the president outlined his new war plan at West Point, our Jim Acosta was getting a real-time reaction from a focus group in Virginia that put the speech to a "dial test."
Gen. Petraeus on troop surge in Afghanistan
There's mixed reaction on Capitol Hill about President Obama's decision to send another 30,000 troops to Afghanistan. But what do top military commanders think? Can the surge in troops really turn the tide of the war?
General David Petraeus, commander of U.S Central Command, was the architect of the surge strategy in Iraq. He spoke to John Roberts on American Morning Wednesday.
Obama outlines Afghan troop buildup, withdrawal plan
West Point, New York (CNN) - President Obama said Tuesday that although the Afghanistan war is not lost, "it has moved backwards" for several years.
Obama outlined his strategy for the war in Afghanistan to an audience at the U.S. Military Academy, one that he says will bring the war "to a successful conclusion."
"There is no imminent threat of the government being overthrown, but the Taliban has gained momentum," Obama said. "Al Qaeda has not reemerged in Afghanistan in the same numbers as before 9/11, but they retain their safe havens along the border.
"And our forces lack the full support they need to effectively train and partner with Afghan Security Forces and better secure the population. ... In short, the status quo is not sustainable."
Obama announced he is deploying 30,000 more U.S. troops to Afghanistan "at the fastest pace possible" with a goal of starting to withdraw forces from the country in July 2011. Read more
Transcript | Key points | Troop #s | Full speech 
What's your take? Sound off below
How one woman escaped sex slavery
By Sean Callebs, CNN
She asked not to be identified. Her first name is Melissa. A victim who beat the odds.
“I thought I would be dead. I never thought I would live to be 22 or 24-years-old,” says Melissa. Her story begins when she was 17, living with another runaway, she says a pimp promised them a better life.
“He started to pay our rent. Pay our bills. Make sure that we had food in our house.” But he also – literally overnight – forced Melissa to trade sex in exchange, she tells us.
“Within a day, my whole life changed. I had to sleep with people. He would tell me where I had to be and when I had to be there.”
Human rights advocates tell us that right now there are about 25,000 young women in the United States who have been forced into sex trafficking. Along with the horror stories we hear of women brought into the U.S. from Asia, Latin America, and Europe, advocates tell us many of the young women forced into sex trafficking are runaways from right here in the United States.
Melissa’s story fits the profile. Trying to escape a broken home, she says she was sexually abused at young age. Pimps prey on women like her.
“It's a problem that's happening right here and it's happening to people’s daughters, nieces, nephews, and grandchildren. And it's plaguing every community in the United States,” says Luis CdeBaca, U.S. ambassador-at-large to fight human trafficking. He says it's time for the U.S. to step up its crackdown on sex trafficking with more aggressive investigations and prosecutions.
About this Show
Welcome to the American Morning blog where you can get daily news updates from American Morning's reporters and producers. Join us for "the most news in the morning," weekdays from 6-9 a.m. ET, only on CNN.
On Twitter
