Obama mourns US troop deaths, swipes at McCain

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http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080713/ap_on_el_pr/obama_interview

Barack Obama mourned the death of nine U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan on Sunday, even as he said John McCain's numerous visits to the region don't leave the Republican better equipped to deal with its volatility as president.

Preparing to embark on only his second visit to Iraq, as well as his first to Afghanistan, the Democrat told reporters: "I will recall the visit he made last year in which he was surrounded by helicopters and SWAT teams and he came back and reported how safe everything was in Baghdad. And I don't think that that was indicative of what was actually happening on the ground at that time."

(snip)
"The main thing I want to communicate is that our thoughts and prayers go out to the families of these extraordinary heroes," Obama said. "And we need to make sure that we're providing them with every bit of support that we can."

The Illinois senator has called for redeploying U.S. forces from Iraq to Afghanistan, a point he underscored Sunday.