You have to feel sorry for John McCain:
Iraqi leaders have failed to take advantage of a reduction in violence to make adequate progress toward resolving their political differences, Gen. David H. Petraeus, the top U.S. commander in Iraq, said Thursday.
McCain has based his presidential campaign on the notion that “the surge is working.” It was a brave position to take early on, when it just seemed like more of the Bush policy of “keep doing what doesn’t work.” The surge looks better now, with violence down and Iraqis stepping up to fight al Qaeda murderers in Iraq.
But Iraqi politicians have failed to achieve — even to pursue — political reconciliation during this period of reduced violence. When the surge ends, does the deadly chaos in Iraq return to pre-surge levels? If so, what’s the solution? Oh, that’s right — John McCain has said he’s fine with keeping U.S. forces in Iraq for 100 years.
U.S. troops giving their lives to establish order in Iraq hasn’t motivated Iraqi politicians. I wonder: will the prospect of having those troops withdrawn motivate them to make the deals necessary to hold their country together?
General Petraeus testifies to Congress next month. I’m not alone in guessing that he’ll say we need “another six months” to fully assess the situation. Let’s see — just two hundred more of those six-month extensions and John McCain gets his wish.
B. Moore | 16-Mar-08 at 8:23 am | Permalink
poor J. Mc. poor, poor dear. poor baby. i weep. (pass me another hankie…)
my screen this morning tells me that both he and ‘Dickie The C.’ are in iraq making personal appearances.
“Batman and Robin are once again off to the rescue” of foreign policy…
IF we assume for the moment that there is a legit reason for an american presence in iraq, (i still ain’t seen no WMD,) beyond some screwy ‘revenge’ senario by the administration, i’d like Georgie B. to explain why it’s taken about 5 years now to clean up the mess. let GB tell me why it takes so damn long seeing as how WWII was settled in 4 years, and that this country of his ignored the long standing domestic tradition of allowing the supposed enemy to fire first? and if so, what was S. Hussien’s involvement in the new york airplane attacks by a bunch of screwballs supposedly financed by Mr. Bin-Laden and his ilk? remind me, i forget. i admit it. i forget.
it seems washington LIKES this conflict that’s bleeding the economy at 12 billion a month, plus doubling the price of oil from fear and paranoia and profiteering alone?
i’m just trying to ‘follow the money’ as deep throat is supposed to have said. yes, i got questions. i get no answers.
tell me how Bat-brain and McCain the boy Blunder are gonna put a STOP to this circus? and i espect no solutions from Ms. Hillary. as i recall she voted for this conflict. so she must like it too.
let us not forget the collateral damages and lives/broken bodies spent. no. let’s not.
let us not forget that to the population of iraq ANY occupation force, even ‘liberators’ become a sore spot. (visitors and dead fish start to stink after 3 days.)
yes, “drizzle, drazzle, druzzle, drome. time for this one to come home.”
long past time.
there is just too much i could say about iraq. just about any point the administration could raise in it’s defense i would have issues with.
feel free to accuse me of hindsight if you must, and if that’s your only option, but i knew something just didn’t add up from the get-go.
and J. Mc. ain’t got no solutions or he’d brag on ’em.
maybe it is he don’t see iraq as a problem?
EXCUSE ME FOR BRINGING UP OLD STUFF, but at least Lyndon Johnson ‘got the message,’ eventually. and Dickie N. as much as some people revile him, DID bring american troops home.
and, in the course of human events, we all will second-guess ANY results of a withdraw of forces from iraq…
yep, just too much to say about iraq…
and i sincerely belive there are factions within iraq itself that see foreign soldiers in their country as various opportunities for political profit and wish them to remain. using soldier’s lives and bodies as bargaining chips for whatever thir spectrum of points of view.
but having gone this far, i have a couple other bones to pick with J. Mc. a story for another time…