Now, as a condition for approving his request for additional troops in Afghanistan, General McChrystal is launching a study creating various options for Obama, including some that reflect us being in this to win, others, not so much. Helene Cooper and Mark Landler of the New York Times report:

General McChrystal's request for more troops is expected to include different troop levels for different goals, an administration official said. The figure of 40,000 would be what one official described as the "we're in this to win" option, which would include ambitious goals for securing the cities, clearing out the countryside of Taliban insurgents and nation-building. More modest troop increases could achieve more limited goals, the official said, including redeploying existing troops to focus mainly on cities.

Senior administration officials made clear that any action on General McChrystal's troop request would await the president's decision on whether the right strategy was in place -- a decision that in turn might prompt a reevaluation of the right number of troops required.