Graham: 20,000 more troops needed in Iraq

AP ^ | Dec. 15, 2006 | BRUCE SMITH

[TexKat]

CHARLESTON, S.C. - Sen. Lindsey Graham said Friday that the U.S. must commit 20,000 more troops to Iraq if that nation's fledgling democracy is to survive.

"If I didn't believe the Iraqi people were still willing to get this right and could get this right, I would not ask one person to go," the South Carolina Republican said following a trip to Iraq. "And I would ask that those who are there come home because I know they are in danger."

"I believe we can still salvage this and I believe it enough to put more Americans into the fight," said Graham, who visited with a congressional delegation that included Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz. McCain also has called for more troops in Iraq where there are now 140,000.

"We never had enough troops to do all the jobs require of our military and I am hoping we will surge additional troops into Iraq to build on the successes of the last year," Graham said during a conference call from Frankfurt, Germany.

[TexKat]

U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina), 3rd left, speaks during a joint press conference with Senator John McCain (R-Arizona), far left, Senator Joseph Lieberman (D-Connecticut), 2nd left, Senator Susan Collins (R- Maine), 3rd right, Senator Mark Kirk (R-Illinois), 2nd right, and Senator John Thune (R-South Dakota), far right, in the U.S. embassy in Baghdad, Iraq, Dec. 14, 2006. The six U.S. Senators are currently visiting Iraq, meeting with U.S. and Iraqi officials and assessing the situation in the war torn country. (AP Photo/Sabah Arar, Pool)

[RightWhale]

Calling up the reserves?

[69ConvertibleFirebird]

The six U.S. Senators are currently visiting Iraq,

[TomGuy]

Johnny Mc's trained parrot is right on cue.

McCain said that yesterday, Generalette Graham parrots it today.

[reelfoot]

"Sen. Lindsey Graham said Friday that the U.S. must commit 20,000 more troops to Iraq if that nation's fledgling democracy is to survive."

Dutifully reporting what McCainiac told him to say.

[Wolfie]

The 2 on the far right look young enough to serve. Suit 'em up, and turn 'em loose.

[69ConvertibleFirebird]

Whoa... where'd the rest of my post go?

It said: "did they leave the green zone yet?"

[samadams2000]

InSane and his poodle are such noble statesmen!

[rocksblues]

While I believe we need more boots on the ground, I also believe we need to stop sharing Info with the MSM.

[Bigh4u2]

Better yet. Why not let all our forces loose, that are currently there, and not tie their hands anymore.

Seems to me 150,000 troops in a 'no holds barred' situation would have things under control in no time at all.

[TexKat]

US Senator Urges More Troops in Iraq

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Posted GMT 12-15-2006 16:41:22

---

BAGHDAD (AP) -- Senator John McCain took his controversial proposal for curbing Iraq's sectarian violence to Baghdad yesterday, calling for an additional 15,000 to 30,000 US troops and joining a congressional delegation in telling Iraq's prime minister he must break his close ties with a radical Shi'ite cleric.

The lawmakers' trip came as the bloodshed showed no signs of abating. At least 74 more people were killed or found dead, including 65 bullet-riddled bodies bearing signs of torture. And gunmen in military uniforms kidnapped as many as 70 shopkeepers and bystanders from a commercial area in central Baghdad in what was apparently an attack against Sunnis; at least 25 were later released, police said.

McCain's position puts him at odds with American public opinion and with the bipartisan Iraq Study Group, which recommended withdrawing a substantial number of US troops over the coming year. The Army in recent days has been looking at how many additional troops could be sent to Iraq if President Bush decides a surge in forces would be helpful.

McCain said he realizes that few Americans favor deploying more U S troops to Iraq, and that if such a move proved unsuccessful in the unpopular war it could hurt his presidential ambitions.

But the Arizona Republican said Americans must realize that if U S troops leave Iraq in chaos, groups such as Al Qaeda "will follow us home and that we will have a large conflict and greater challenges than those that we now face here in Iraq."

"The American people are confused, they're frustrated, they're disappointed by the Iraq war, but they also want us to succeed if there's any way to do that," McCain told reporters in Baghdad.

He said conditions in some areas of Iraq have improved since his last visit in March, but "I believe there is still a compelling reason to have an increase in troops here in Baghdad and in Anbar province in order to bring the sectarian violence under control" and to "allow the political process to proceed."

Two other senators in the delegation, Joseph Lieberman, Democrat of Connecticut, and Lindsey Graham, Republican of South Carolina, said they agreed.

"We need more, not less, U S troops here," Lieberman said.

Another senator in the group, moderate Republican Susan Collins of Maine, disagreed.

"Iraq is in crisis. The rising sectarian violence threatens the very existence of Iraq as a nation," she said. The current US strategy in Iraq has failed, but "I'm not yet convinced that additional troops will pave the way to a peaceful Iraq in a lasting sense," Collins said.

"My fear is that if we have more troops sent to Iraq that we will just see more injuries and deaths, that we might have a short term impact, but without a long-term political settlement," she said.

Collins' s remarks appeared to reflect the findings of the Iraq Study Group, which concluded that sustained increases in US troops would not solve the fundamental problem and that violence would renew once those forces left the area.

Graham said he was shocked by the situation in Baghdad.

"The first time I came here with Senator McCain we went rug shopping. Yesterday, we moved around in a tank. It's one of the most dangerous places on the planet," he said.

The congressional delegation, which also included Republicans Senator John Thune of South Dakota and Representative Mark Kirk from Illinois, left Baghdad yesterday to tour the southern port city of Basra and Ramadi, the insurgent stronghold west of Baghdad.

Lieberman said the senators met with Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, a Shi'ite, and urged him to break his ties with Moqtada al-Sadr and disarm the anti-US cleric's Mahdi Army militia, which has been blamed along with Sunni Arab insurgents for the sectarian violence and ruthless attacks on US forces.

Sadr controls 30 of the 275 parliament seats and is a key figure in Maliki's coalition.

Lieberman said the delegation left its meetings with Maliki, President Jalal Talabani, and other Iraqi officials believing "there is a force of moderates within the context of Iraqi politics coming together to strengthen the center here against the extremists."

He said the delegation was "quite explicit" about "how important it is that the Iraqis themselves begin to take aggressive action to disarm the militias, to stop the sectarian violence and to involve all the people in . . . governance," including promised provincial elections.

The senator said moderates in parliament may look for another leader if Maliki fails to do that.

http://www.aina.org/news/20061215104122.htm

[quantfive]

20,000 troops will not make any difference if we have them now or if we had 20,000 more troops 2 years ago. Waging war based on being PC has to end and end now. When our troops have the right to pro-actively engage the enemy instead of engaging re-actively they will get the job done. When our troops can kill the enemy whether they are hiding in mosques or not our troops will get the job done. When we can use water-boarding and other means of semi-human torture to get the intelligence we need to locate the enemy then our troops will get the job done. I could go on...

[Real Cynic No More]

And what is the basis for 20,000? Why not 25,000? 15,000?

Without such information, this is merely a politicization of the issues.

[Alberta's Child]

I have an idea here . . .

One member of Congress (House and Senate) should be selected at random to serve on active combat duty in Iraq for every 10,000 U.S. military personnel over there.

"We're all right behind you, Lindsey!"

[libbylu]

I expect graham to be vp on the ticket if mccain gets the nomination, God help us all.

[upchuck]

I wonder if Pandsey and McCain room together on these trips?

Lindsey Ping

Add me to the list. / Remove me from the list.

[Buck W.]

"U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina), 3rd left..."

Describes his political position, too.

[rrrod]

Well, whatever John McCain's cabana boy sez must be true.....

[traditional1]

"Johnny Mc's trained parrot is right on cue."

Still sucking ass to McLame, and can hold 10 pounds of vacuum on an onion sack!

[upchuck]

Massive, hugh BUMP to what you wrote.

Untie their other hand so they can get the job done.