Posted on 11/13/2006 4:22:00 PM PST by Tulsa Ramjet
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- With a top Democrat calling for a "phased redeployment" of U.S. troops in Iraq, President Bush met Monday with a commission studying the war and said conditions in Iraq, not politics, would dictate troop levels there.
Sen. Carl Levin of Michigan, who is expected to chair the Armed Service Committee in January when Democrats take control of Congress, said redeploying troops would prompt the Iraqis to take more expeditious steps to ending the war.
"We cannot save the Iraqis from themselves," Levin said. "We've been told repeatedly by our top uniformed military leaders that there is no purely military solution in Iraq; there is only a political solution in Iraq." (Watch how Levin suggests proving U.S. troops will not be in Iraq forever -- 1:27 )
The Michigan senator said only Iraqis could determine the course for their country: "They and they alone are going to decide whether they're going to have a nation or whether they're going to have an all-out civil war."
White House press secretary Tony Snow conceded Monday that conditions in Iraq are "not getting better fast enough," but he insisted "the strategy for victory is working."
Snow further disregarded Levin's call for troops to be withdrawn in months, saying the proposal "doesn't have any meat and bones to it."
(Excerpt) Read more at cnn.com ...
Withdrawal would mean leaving the memory of the "meat and bones" of our dead to the vultures of defeatism, and ecstatsy of muslims.
Withdrawal would mean leaving the memory of the "meat and bones" of our dead to the vultures of defeatism, and ecstatsy of muslims.
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Yes, and add to the existing stigma of failed, politician-run "wars" that the USA has failed at, and run away from only to leave the country to the enemy. I know -- I served in the Nam era, and it was ugly and such a tragic waste of 50,000 good men and women.
How will the USA be viewed by allies if we do it again?? Of course, the liberal socialists do not care, because now they have to deliver on their anti-war campaign "promise" to bring the troops home....
Thank You voters for a fine gift for America --- a liberal socialist Congress that is anti-military and anti-anything except taxing and spending for power.
I am continually amazed to see how little the Democrats have gleaned from history. Three million people died as a result of the Democrat controlled Congress cutting off funding for our efforts in South Vietnam. Now they seem to want to do the same thing in Iraq.
If we do this now, the United States will never again be to team up with a nation to help it's citizens remove a flawed leader on the order of Hussein, or a pre-Hitlerian individual.
It will destabalize the entire Middle-East. It will leave the door wide open for Iran, Syria and whatever Iraq turns into, to do whatever they please.
Hezbollah is already making a move in Lebanon.
We're messing with fire here.
"a liberal socialist Congress that is anti-military"
Hey, and it only took them a week to say they want to start a pull-out in a few months. THAT's leadership! Al-Sadr and Pelosi needs to have a power lunch now.
Al-sader: 'Seriously Nancy, try the blue burka, it brings out your devilish eyes.'
Pelosi: Stop it, Muqtada. You are making me blush.
If the Democrats do this if I were a small nation US Ally I would start sucking up to China or Russia. We will have shown for the umpteenth time we are not to be trusted.
Olympia Snow is a liberal Republican. Anyone who thinks there's no difference between a left R and a left D is an idiot.
Well yes, at least in the sense that it might prompt one side to try to wipe the others out. That's not exactly the sort of "ending" we want.
However, a threat of withdrawal might speed things up a bit, such as this sort of public comment. One might even suspect that Bush isn't entirely unhappy about it. But of course, everybody knows he's too dumb for that...
"Snow further disregarded Levin's call for troops to be withdrawn in months, saying the proposal "doesn't have any meat and bones to it."
Tony Snow was wonderful as usual today at his news conference. I just wish he would run for President! He would have my vote for sure!
But our strategy cannot be a moneypit. We need results and generally quick (12-18 months). Othewise it will take another national attack to pull our heads out of fantasy football.
I guarantee you both presidential nominees in 2008 will campaign on withdrawl. So Bush has 12-18 months to make it right. Nothing will occur the last few months of his term.
I give it six months for the dems to screw up the works. I don't think they can help themselves. Failing that, I agree with your timetable. I'd sure hate to see someone on the right campaign on withdrawel. I'd rather see them stick it to the democrats for destabalizing the Middle-East and guaranteeing a million or so Iraqis will die as a result of our withdrawel. Then when it happens, the dems can wear it.
They should have begun a buildup on the Iranian border. The Iranian army should already be destroyed and we should be looking sternly at NK.
The time to clean up the mess from war is after the war has been won.
Does President Bush know how to veto anything?
It amazes me too.
I know that murtha is certifiable but even he has to see his "strategy" is vietnam redux. He wants to remove forces and establish rapid deployment forces to sweep in and kill terrorist then retreat again.
The truth is his policy is scarily similar to all those stories I've heard about 'nam. ...Today we take hil "59" and loose 500 boys , tomorrow we retreat and thursday we do it all over again including the casulaties.
If you take ground, you take it ONCE and hold it!
He's the one ( murtha) who has no value for life or assets.
The American people have spoken and agree with the Democrats. We no longer have the will to win in Iraq and all our troops should come home, immediately. There is no need to sacrifice our men and women in uniform for the America that doesn't deserve them. Bring them home and give America what it wants.
dims know the History well... they just don't give a damn!
LLS
:0)
Couldn't agree more...
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