A forthcoming memoir from former Defense Secretary Robert Gates says President Obama did not believe in his own strategy for the war in Afghanistan. Obama ordered a surge of 30,000 troops in 2009, but Gates says the president had major doubts. Describing his thoughts at a 2011 meeting, Gates writes: “The president doesn’t trust his commander, can’t stand [Afghan President Hamid] Karzai, doesn’t believe in his own strategy, and doesn’t consider the war to be his. For him, it’s all about getting out.” Gates was appointed under President George W. Bush, but stayed on during President Obama’s first term.