Conservative Republicans who have challenged Obama's steps toward ending the Afghanistan mission said on Sunday talk shows that justice must be done, but the goal of preventing Afghanistan from again becoming a terrorist haven remained the focus.
"This is tragic and will be investigated, and that soldier will be held accountable for his actions under the military justice system," Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina said on the ABC program "This Week with George Stephanopoulos." "Unfortunately, these things happen in war."
Instead of hastening a U.S. departure, the proper response is to continue preparing Afghan security forces to assume a greater role while negotiating a strategic partnership with the government that would include some U.S. resources staying on past 2014 in order to "stop this narrative that we're leaving," Graham said.
"We can win this thing. We can get it right," Graham said. "I will support the president when he does the right thing."
Another conservative, Arizona Sen. John McCain, called the shootings "a terrible situation."
"It is one of those things that you cannot explain except to extend your deepest sympathy to those victims and see that justice is done," McCain said on "Fox News Sunday."
At the same time, he cited recent progress in talks on a strategic partnership with Afghanistan as a step in the right direction while noting other challenges facing the country, including government corruption and safe haven in Pakistan for insurgents.
Republican presidential hopeful Newt Gingrich, meanwhile, called for condolences to the families and possible compensation for their losses in an effort to make clear a moral distinction between the U.S. forces and their enemies, described by Gingrich as terrorists "in the business worldwide of killing the innocent."
Asked if was time for the United States to leave Afghanistan, Gingrich told the CBS program "Face the Nation" that "I think it is."
Condolences, questions over Afghan shootings - CNN.com