“President Obama was right to shift the focus from Iraq to Afghanistan,” he said. “Afghanistan is where the problem began on 9/11. It is important that we do whatever we can so that will not happen again.”

Levin said it is important not just to combat the Taliban but also to train Afghan people to take responsibility for their own security.

“It’s not just (U.S.) military going in with the Afghan army,” he said. “It’s also leaving in place a government structure, which will help provide services as well as security to the Afghan people.”

James Madison College freshman Ryan Cagney said he was interested in Levin’s support of the Afghanistan shift.

“I like that the focus has gone to Afghanistan instead of Iraq,” he said. “I am still forming my own opinions right now, and this is informational.”

Levin praised the effectiveness of the stimulus package passed a year ago for job creation and said the U.S. Senate will be more focused on jobs in upcoming weeks.

“We still have to focus more on getting jobs,” he said.

Political science junior Shereen Hamed said people need to be aware of the specific benefits of the stimulus package.

“I feel not enough people are aware of how important it was and what it brought to Michigan,” she said. “I don’t think people realize where that spending went and how much worse the economy would have been had (it) not passed.”

Following Levin’s address about Afghanistan and the economy, attendees had the opportunity to ask questions.

Political theory and constitutional democracy sophomore John Hutar said it is important for college students to question elected officials.

“There are a lot of exciting things going on in our country,” he said. “It’s important that we be able to hold them accountable for what they do on Capitol Hill.”

Levin agreed students should be concerned and engaged in the actions of their elected officials.

“There is great uncertainty in this economy about what lies ahead,” he said. “They have a right to great intellectual curiosity.”