USA - AFGHANISTAN: Obama's Afghan quagmire looms over. Today's mid-term elections could prove decisive for the future of the Obama administration and the United States\' continued presence in Afghanistan is the chief foreign policy issue for the White House. Obama is banking on the Afghan security forces being able to step up and thus negotiate an exit for American troops from 2011. Passing on the baton involves a sizeable communications effort, as France 24 observed in Wardak province where US paratroopers prepare for what could be their last mission.