Posted on 11/16/2005 9:02:56 AM PST by FreeKeys
Yesterday’s overwhelming Senate vote to require detailed reporting to Congress on Iraq and make clear that the United States will not stay longer “than required” puts Iraq back on Congress’s agenda.
There is now a strong bipartisan consensus that we need an exit strategy. But yet to emerge is the content of that strategy.
We have two overriding objectives in Iraq: to facilitate a viable power-sharing agreement among Sunnis, Shiites and Kurds and to turn over responsibility for security to the Iraqis on a steady basis.
Any exit strategy must address both issues in order to leave post-Saddam Iraq in better shape than we found it, to honor the sacrifices of more than 2,000 troops and to justify the expenditure of billions of dollars.
By insisting on a series of detailed and regular reports, the Senate language puts the burden — properly — on the administration to develop an exit strategy. As this happens, several steps could be useful to clarify U.S. intentions:
• First, President Bush should state unequivocally that the United States does not seek and will not maintain permanent military bases in Iraq. Our 60-year presence in Germany and our 50-year presence in Korea rightfully make people nervous that a half-century from now American Marines will be living on a base in downtown Baghdad. President Bush should put that to rest — and make clear that U.S. policy is to leave Iraq completely.
• Second, President Bush must be explicit that we have no designs on Iraq’s precious natural resource, oil. He should state clearly that oil revenues belong to the people of Iraq and no one else. At the same time, our government should also help Iraq get the oil flowing and encourage its neighbors, like Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, to assist.
• Third, the president should redouble diplomatic efforts to get allies and partners to come into Iraq to share the burden for security and infrastructure. Internationalizing our efforts will take the target off our back and make it easier for us to leave. But it will only work if we cede control over contracts and encourage significant foreign participation in the vast work of reconstructing Iraq.
• Fourth, President Bush should ask a high-level personal envoy to focus on nothing but ironing out the political conflict among Shiites, Sunnis and Kurds. The goal is to create a viable, democratic federal government, not a weakened, balkanized state, despite the conspiracy theories of some. U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad, who helped engineer the Sunni “buy-in” to the recent constitutional referendum, is a natural choice for this role, but it will mean reducing his other responsibilities.
• And fifth, we must accelerate training of Iraqi military units to operate independently. Establishing metrics and a drawdown pegged to success, as Rep. Ike Skelton (D-Mo.) has proposed, will send the unequivocal message to the Iraqi people that they must become the defenders of their own country.
President Bush and his advisers decided how and when to fight this war. They owe Congress and the American people a detailed strategy to bring our engagement in Iraq to a successful end. An exit strategy that clarifies America’s political and strategic intentions will hasten the achievement of U.S. objectives and bring our brave men and women home.
Harman, the ranking member on the House Intelligence Committee, represents California’s 36th Congressional District. She returned from her most recent visit to Iraq on Sept. 30.
Yeah, you dumbass Democrat, let's end up LOSING our overall strategic position in the Gulf because of your pinhead views on national security.
I love it. That reminds me of a verse to "McNamara's Band" I wrote in '63:
Oh, me name is McNamara, I'm the leader of a band
Of cost-accounting "whiz kids", we're the greatest in the land
Please say that we're the best, the TFX you can't deny
Don't call it a "Flying Edsel" or I'll break right down and cry!
(chorus):
Oh, around Da Nang the bombs go bang
And the guns they blaze away
While we avoid decisions our computers are run today
By Kennedy, Kennedy, Morse and Rusk, Fullbright and Fred Korth
Now none dare say that the only way
Out of Vietnam is north!
The goal in the war on Islamic terrorism should be this and this alone: total victory. And total victory means not having to fear being attacked by our enemies anymore.
To sum it all up the exit strategy of the Rats is to cut and run like Billy Jeff did from Mogadishu.
They don't care what happens afterwards
I've changed my mind about pulling out of Germany. Next battle in the war on terror may be Battleground Europe, and we need to stay in theater. Much as I hate the idea of pulling the French Chestnuts out again, we have vital interests in the region.
Just more political grandstanding, posturing, prancing, and posing. They get voluminous reports on the Iraq situation already, and the strategy is more than clear. As Rumsfeld put it, "The Pentagon sends over 900 reports a year to Congress. I hope somebody is reading some of them."
Senators or Congressmen ride in subway cars? Surely you jest.
Dear Editors:
It is time to cut and run in Iraq.
Bush and virtually every Democrat, world leader, and intelligence agency came to the conclusion that Saddam had WMD. Since Saddam’s WMD have not yet been found, that appears to have been a big, but honest, mistake. Nonetheless, the Democrats’ lie that “Bush Lied,” has stuck with the Average American.
Democrats and the Media have convinced a majority of Americans that 2,000 dead soldiers is too high a price to win what Al Qaeda calls the “Central Front” in the War on Terror. It is immoral risk our troops when the Average American doesn’t believe fighting terrorists is worthwhile.
Rather than waste another soldier’s life defending our freedom against terrorists, let’s follow our Democrat Senators’ advice: cut and run, and turn Iraq over to Al Qaeda in Iraq. Bin Laden can come out of his cave and run the place.
Watching Democrats’ lies and cowardice cause Western Civilization to capitulate to medieval thugs proves Al Qaeda was right; Average Americans are unwilling to defend themselves.
My recommendation: study the Koran. Weak Americans should bow down to their superiors, the Islamofascists who can successfully dictate an American surrender through the Democrat party.
Right?
On second thought, it was more like '66.
Right.
"If ye love wealth greater than liberty, the tranquility of servitude greater than the animating contest for freedom, go home from us in peace. We seek not your counsel, nor your arms. Crouch down and lick the hand that feeds you; and may posterity forget that ye were our countrymen." -- Samuel Adams
Wow! I'll drink (a Sam Adams) to that!
(Changing tag-line)
OK...true enough. I suppose only Mayor Bloomberg does that!
That was (mostly)sarcasm. As much as I would like to see it happen (I walked out of 1 WTC on 9/11), I know it's not a practical solution.
Current military plan is to go to 92K by the end of '06, right?
Isn't that an exit strategy?
Yes, I was thinking about that. It's really surprising that he does. Not that it impresses many people I wouldn't think. He doesn't seem to be a big friend of the plebians.
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