Accusations of Leaked NIE on Afghanistan

A former high-level intelligence official believes that the National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) leaked in December 2013 was intentionally put out on the street by White House officials who want to paint a dismal picture of the situation in Afghanistan. The motive behind the leak is to prepare the U.S. public for an eventual "zero option" for U.S. involvement in Afghanistan; meaning that all troops will be removed by December 2014. It is believed that staffers working for Obama want to see the U.S. completely out of Afghanistan as soon as possible and the NIE provided an intelligence report that says the situation is very bad. Is this Iraq all over again? Read the story entitled "Cranked Up Intelligence", Newsweek, January 10, 2014.