Posted on 11/17/2003 11:26:39 PM PST by JohnHuang2
New leadership in Iraq
Posted: November 18, 2003
1:00 a.m. Eastern
© 2003 WorldNetDaily.com
President Bush is reportedly not pleased with the job Paul Bremer is doing in Iraq.
That's progress.
It's time to rethink Bremer. It's time to rethink the qualifications needed for the person leading the rebuilding of Iraq. It's time to rethink what has worked and not worked in the past in such situations.
When the U.S. conquered Japan in 1945, we didn't send a career bureaucrat to turn the country around, to change the culture, to rebuild the economy and the nation's infrastructure as rapidly as possible.
We sent a victorious general – Douglas MacArthur.
The same prescription is needed in Iraq.
The man for the job is Gen. John Abizaid, currently running Central Command.
Why Abizaid?
- The Arab culture respects power and might. Abizaid's position as a military man who can back up his words with force would make him much more effective in Iraq.
- As an Arab-American, he speaks the language and knows the culture.
- Military men understand objectives and timetables.
Abizaid is the right man at the right time. That's why he was the obvious choice to run Central Command. The same credentials make him the best choice for the rebuilding of Iraq.
We may be squeamish about military men reconstructing civil societies today, but, the truth is, there's good history to support the concept – especially in a place like Iraq.
Abizaid knows how to command. He knows how to give direction. He knows how to get results. He's got a track record.
Paul Bremer may have a good education. He may have gone to the right schools. He may be a member in good standing of the Council on Foreign Relations. But he has no credentials for the job of rebuilding Iraq.
The career diplomat didn't know much about Iraq when he took the job, and there was little time for on-the-job training.
Bremer was doomed to failure from the beginning. He has been unable to get the Iraqis to take care of their own business quickly enough. The interim council is a joke. It is nowhere near finished with a draft of a constitution for the new republic. These people need firm direction – the kind that a general can provide.
The word on the street is that Bremer's days are numbered. But the smart money says he will be replaced by Robert Blackwill of the U.S. State Department. Big mistake.
We cannot afford to fail again in Iraq. Let's not make the same mistake twice.
When you don't want to fail, you turn things over to tough guys who make things happen. Abizaid in the man for the job – maybe the only man for the job.
He knows Iraq – having fought in two wars there. He knows the Arab world – having studied in Jordan. He knows the objectives – and, like most military men, he wants to stop the fighting as quickly as possible.
Iraq needs strong leadership – not direction from diplomats and professional politicians. Changing from one diplomat to another is not the answer – not for Iraq, not for any comparable scenario.
It's time Americans started trusting military men, again – especially when a big part of the job in Iraq remains a military problem. But military men have skills beyond killing people and breaking things. They've demonstrated it time and time again in American history. It's time to give one another chance – in Iraq.
The last thing they wanted was a handover of sovereignty to Iraqis. Bush outmaneuvered them.
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