Presidents don't make decisions in a vacuum

Sully makes a good point as we await Obama's decision on Afghanistan,

One other intuition: Obama has recently clearly been pondering the dreadful responsibility of sending soldiers to war. From the decision to witness the return of coffins at Dover to the un-scheduled solitary trip to Arlington and this week's emotionally cathartic ceremony at Fort Hood: these events, it seems to me, would concentrate any serious, ethical president's mind.

Hard to imagine that seeing the reality of war in such stark terms wouldn't affect someone, much less the Commander in Chief.