New York rep more optimistic about Afghanistan

After a week in Iraq, Kurdistan and Afghanistan, U.S. Rep. Michael Arcuri, D-Utica, said he has a new perspective on U.S. military involvement in those areas.

He made the trip with a bipartisan delegation that included six representatives.

"They are dedicated people, and we should be so proud of them," he said. "But we are spending hundreds of billions of dollars in Iraq, and it's time for Iraq to step up and we need to bring our troops home. And we need to spend some of that money here in Upstate New York."

He said in his view. Iraq is a political problem that may not have a military solution, and politics in Iraq is a "quagmire."

"Politics in Washington pales in comparison to the complexities of politics in Iraq," he said. "The one thing you learn about Iraq is it's like peeling an onion, every layer you peel, you find a problem and another problem."

Arcuri was far more optimistic about the U.S. role in Afghanistan.

"Instead of having the massive investment in Iraq, we should have some of that in Afghanistan," he said. "We will get significantly more return in the money we are putting in, and we will achieve much more."

He said he saw clear, tangible results to U.S. activities in Afghanistan.

"In Afghanistan, we are building roads where dirt paths once existed," he said. "We are connecting communities that never were connected before."

That, in turn, reduces the cost of food and other items because transportation costs less, he said.

Additionally, he said, many of the U.S.-funded projects employed Afghan laborers. That gives those workers another option other than working for the Taliban, he said.

It may take longer for them to complete projects using hand-held hammers instead of jackhammers, Arcuri said, but it's worth it.

"We keep them working, and we are making incredible strides there," he said. "This is singularly the best way to fight terrorism."