Regarding the Sept. 29 letter "Generals on ground know best": The president isn’t deliberating over whether the commanders on the ground are making sound assessments of their situations. He’s deciding on the strategic direction for the country and that’s precisely, and singularly, "his job."

Of course he should listen to the commanders, and I’m sure he does, but they’re looking at things from a much more narrow view and are only concerned about their mission. Our nation’s leader has to make decisions based on what’s best for the country on the whole, not what’s best for one commander in one war. When the president re-evaluates the war effort, he’s prioritizing resources. Like the letter writer, I hope support for the war effort in Afghanistan is high on the list. But if it’s not, that doesn’t mean that he didn’t critically review his subordinate commander’s assessment; it just means he decided to go in another direction.

Maj. Tom SachariasonAl Udeid Air Base, Qatar