This has been a dire day in Afghanistan for U-S forces.
Three helicopter crashes have killed fourteen Americans.

At least 47 U-S service members have been killed this month alone in the Afghan War.

The deadliest day in Afghanistan in four years began with a mid-air collision.

In the early morning hours in Helmand Province, two U-S Marine helicopters collided ... killing 4 American troops ... injuring 2. President Obama spoke this afternoon about the deaths. "They were willing to risk their lives, in this case, to prevent Afghanistan from once again becoming a safe haven for al Qaeda and its extremist allies. And today, they gave their lives to protect ours."

Then, a chinook helicopter carrying U-S Special Forces soldiers and Drug Enforcement Agency agents - targeting a Taliban drug ring - crashed in western Afghanistan ... killing 10 Americans. Colonel Wayne Shanks is a coalition spokesman. "We actually got into a fairly serious fire fight in that particular village and we killed 14 of the enemy fighters before our forces went to the helicopters to fly away."

It was the latest reminder of the stakes in the debate over whether to send in tens of thousand more American troops. Senator John Kerry said this afternoon; "Americans are right to be asking whether the objectives are achievable and are they worth the sacrifice."

Elsewhere, the governor of Afghanistan's Nangarhar Province survived an assassination attempt after gunmen fired on his convoy ... ending a violent 24 hours ... as the potential for more election violence rises.

So far.. the Department of Defense hasn't released the names of those killed in the crashes.
Meanwhile, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said the President's decision on whether to send more troops could come at any moment. And it might - or might not - come before a runoff in the Afghan election.

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