How can a Senator of the United States complain that there hasn’t been enough oversight over our Iraq and Afghanistan operations, when that’s just what his job is in part?
This man is an attention-hog, little else.
John McCain is one of the biggest idiots to ever sit in the U.S. Senate. He’s an embarrassment.
Right, and your “support any military op no matter how stupid” approach has absolutely nothing to do with the problem, eh Senator?
Well, nation-building is indeed a “noble effort” and in many cases also the right thing to do if done right, e.g., Japan and Germany (and some other parts of Europe and Asia) after WWII.
Germany and Japan are generally the staunch American allies and democratic and economic bulwarks in Europe and Asia, respectively, even as they compete with the U.S. economically. It took seven years to let them govern themselves pretty much with autonomy.
Even Iraq and Afghanistan, which haven’t been “civilized” - by any measure, compared with pre-war Germany and Japan - before their old anti-US regimes were toppled are not wasted efforts, even though a lot of nation-building and military things could’ve been done better. In part, possibly, because of the establishment of the autonomous democratic government too early, before their populations “democratically matured” and, in part, because of internecine religious warfare and tribal score-settling, as well as Islamic nature of the countries. Iraq and Afghanistan populations are not as homogenous as Germany and Japan were.
On the other hand, let’s compare “nation-built” Iraq and Afghanistan to [”no boots on the ground”] man-made disasters of Libya, Egypt or Kosovo / Serbia (former Yugoslavian region bombed by Clinton) which are more likely to be anti-American and a long-term problem, not help to the U.S. and Western interests.
Who will “build” the nations on the ruins of generally benign towards America and the West former governments? Answer - let’s not forget the earlier example of “Islamic Spring” that was Iran (with Jimmy Carter’s help).
You can’t “teach” democracy in a few years, especially in some regions that have never experienced it or have too many scores to settle. Democracy sometimes needs to be “managed” by those with experience and who have mutual (even if only regional) interests in minds and hearts.
We need out completely ..help them get their oil business up and going..send them a bill and let them kill each other