if we end up in a few years without permanent air bases/air power projection capability in iraq it will be a political failure beyond words.
Spot On!
It's damn hard to find many who will admit it, but Iraq is the Germany of this century, as far as American projection of power is concerned.
It's strategic location in relation to Iran, Russia, Jordan, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Turkey,etc.... and to protect Israel, is without question.
"if we end up in a few years without permanent air bases/air power projection capability in iraq it will be a political failure beyond words."
I'm afraid this is becoming a very strong likelihood. It wouldn't have to be this way if we were brutally honest about the situation. We could start setting up air bases now in the Kurdish part of Iraq, then back their declaration of an independent Iraqi Kurdistan later, after we withdrew from the rest of Iraq and it came (probably) under the control of Iran.
Our army could make their independence stick without a single casualty because there are no IED's and no car bombings in the Kurdish sector of Iraq (because, unlike the Shi'ites) the Kurds do not trust Iran, a Russian ally who is secretly on the same side as the Sunni terrorists, also under Russian control.
However, this would mean admitting partial defeat. Rather, Bush will bravely "hold his ground" and "stay the course" on the path toward a unified Iraq. Hillary will probably be elected the next president as a direct result of a Tet-style offensive in October 2008 and not only withdraw our troops, but withdraw all military aid from the Iraqi government, simply dropping them into the lap of the Iranians.
Then she will give one of her quasi-feminine expressions and say, like a young wife who just burned the roast, "Oops. didn't mean to do that."