Start U.S. Iraq withdrawal in 4-6 months: Democrats

Reuters ^ | 12 November | staff

[shrinkermd]

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democrats, who won majorities in the U.S. Congress in last week's elections, said on Sunday they will push for a phased withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq to begin in four to six months.

"The first order of business is to change the direction of Iraq policy," said Sen. Carl Levin (news, bio, voting record), a Michigan Democrat who is expected to be chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee in the new Congress.

Levin, on ABC's "This Week," said he hoped some Republicans would emerge to join Democrats and press the administration of President George W. Bush to tell the Iraqi government that U.S. presence was "not open-ended."

Bush has insisted that U.S. troops would not leave Iraq until the Iraqis were able to take over security for their country.

"We need to begin a phased redeployment of forces from Iraq in four to six months," Levin said.

Speaking on the same program, Sen. Joseph Biden (news, bio, voting record), a Delaware Democrat who is expected to head the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said he supported Levin's proposal for a withdrawal.

[juliej]

If our troops withdraw, I hope the terrorist set up camp in front of Biden's and Levin's homes.

[windsorknot]

Picture caption: the Democrat Plan for the Iraq Situation.

[holden]

Iran will dominate through continued terrorism and Mookie's militias. They'll eventually take over the hundreds of billions of annual oil revenue. They'll then have plenty of wherewithal to send tremendous shock waves through our economy via their state-sponsored terrorism and (possibly purchased nukes. Their oil economy can likely remain much more stable in the near-term (given Dem dominance).

Look for a strategic alliance with Pakistan that gives the new IRAN-IRAQ nukes sufficient to wipe out Israel by 2009.

Unless we're willing to nuke them into submission, our way of life is cooked. Even that possible choice will now have to come at great expense from endured attacks against American blood and treasure.

Our granddaughters will wear burkas or cease to exist if Iran and the Islamonazis aren't stopped militarily. We must retake the House and the presidency in '08.

HF

[smoketree]

Viet Nam is old news too but they keep bringing that up. They just skip over Bosnia to Viet Nam.
It doesn't work for them so they ignore it.

[mewzilla]

But don't forget one thing: The 'Rats are privy to intel. They know what's out there, what could be coming. And the 'Rats know what'll happen to them if they materially aid and abet it. If that hasn't sunk in yet, by the time the newbies are sworn in it will.

[RFEngineer]

"...he is joining them in encouraging the genocide sure to follow in Iraq."

People act as if this is a singular event that occured last Tuesday.

The march against conservatism, and the terrible things for the country and the world that follow started a long time ago.

The damn just burst on Tuesday.....but the water was rising, and the foundation was being undermined for quite some time.

This is the new reality. If we don't like it, then we better start working on building the infrastructure to support a sustainable conservative majority.

I would suggest a foundation of consevative principles firmly attached to constitutionalist bedrock.

It's going to take time to rebuild, but it took 6 years for compassionate conservatism to bring us to this disaster, so lets focus on one step at a time.

[Jewels1091]

american will pay dearly for their weakness!

[Mo1]

How do you do this without the US looking as though it failed?

No country will ever trust us again because of the the Dems are about to do

This message that is about to be sent .. is that Americans don't have the spine to fight and defend freedom

[doug from upland]

The terrorists are very, very happy --- http://youtube.com/watch?v=agMaBD1MoRg

[RandallFlagg]

And the Christmas after that, the terrorists who followed us home will destroy us.

[livius]

Dems live in fantasy land. They never think it will happen to sweet lil ol them. After all, the terrorists just haven't been treated with enough respect, and once they get a bit of the Dem luv fest, everything will be groovy.

[smoketree]

And when lots of Americans are dying in the last days of the pull out, more than if we stayed how are they going to say they are for the troops?
I know they'll say it anyway because they have no conscience but the truth will be that they caused a lot more deaths.

[jveritas]

People are way overrating the power of Congress to influence foreign policies. The executive branch and the President of the United States is stronger than 66% of Congress on domestic issues and stronger than 90% of Congress on foreign policy issues. Many people outside and inside the US are about to learn some lessons about the US Constitution.

[RFEngineer]

"The damn just burst on Tuesday

er...DAM

[Earthdweller]

I wonder if the NY slimes will cover the massacres of Iraqis if we pull out too quickly?

[amutr22]

They'll do some polling this week and see how the public takes this news.

---

Well..unfortunately we've already seen what the public will say.

[muawiyah]

The failure of the Whigs led directly to the Civil War. We face something similar with the failure of the Democrats only we got an awful lot of nukes.

[shrinkermd]

You are giving credit to the Democrats where credit may not be due. They may have some idea of what is coming, but they are incapable of emotionally acting on their constituents wishes.

The first thing we will notice is investigation after investigation. The government will seem or be paralyzed and then the stock market will begin to slip. Combined with an ineluctable decline of the dollar the result will be a financial catastrophe at the same time we will be having a foreign policy catastrophe.

If you assess Biden and Levin on their merits one can only conclude they lack independent judgment and are only slightly above the masses in intelligence. Not really the kind of people one would hope for running the "shining city on the hill."

[xarmydog]

I remember that picture as if it were yesterday.First time I had seen it in many moons.I hope we do not see one similar to it,only with a new type of chopper,and the people are wearing burkas.

[jveritas]

100% correct. Some people on FR needs to read the US Constitution and see who is the CIC of the armed forces and who has 90% of power on foreign policies issues.

If you go with the stupid logic of some people about the power of Congress to shape foreign policy, then we it is not worth for us fighting anymore to win Presidential elections let us just focus on winning Congress.