Posted on 03/31/2008 12:38:08 PM PDT by april15Bendovr
Hagel: Who says we have to win Iraq? Sat, 29 Mar 2008 19:19:47
Republican Senator Chuck Hagel says some of the top politicians in Washington hold regrettable views on how the Iraq war should end.
In a Thursday interview with CNN, Hagel criticized Republican nominee-in-waiting John McCain for framing the situation in Iraq as one that the US must 'win'.
"John (McCain), the President and the others have put the Iraqi situation in the wrong context. This isn't a win or lose," said Hagel.
"We shouldn't frame this up as a win-or-lose because, when we do that - and this is where I have a major disagreement with McCain, then on that basis we'll be there forever," expounded the Nebraska senator.
According to Hagel, it is up to the Iraqi people to decide what kind of government they want, not Washington.
The prominent lawmaker concluded that the next US president should feel bound to unite Washington and said Democratic candidate Barack Obama stands the best chance in this regard.
ahh the intelligence of Washington DC. I wonder how he plays chess? See how many of your opponents you can keep on the board?
Mike Gravel switched to the Libertarian, maybe Hagel and Paul can join him.
What a freaking moron.
"Give 'em hell" Harry would be considered too conservative for the GOP nomination.
Whoever helped elect this self-serving dufus needs to have their heads examined.
GET HIM OUTTA THERE.
Chuck Hagel: proof that terminal stupidity is no roadblock to becoming a US Senator.
Imagine if a leadind Senator would have taken that line in World War II with say France. Oh it should not be about win or lose, something can be worked out or the French can decide for themselves etc........
What silly nonsense.
In a world war you either win a battle or you lose a battle. There are no other options....
If Hagel does not understand that this is a world war then he has no right to be a Senator in America
SAD SACK Hagel!! What a pathetic man. Is he MARRIED???
He should be buried alongside Marx!
I am sure Ahmadinejad could find him a wife in Iran after this story.
Hagel is way wrong about that. The USA will be there in the Gulf only until the oil is no longer important to civilization.
He IS married and has a son named ZILLER. He also has some Iranian Group with Dennis Kuchinich!
Gee! I wonder why you aren’t running for reelection this year Hagel?
You don't spend much time in Iraq, do you, Senator Idiot?
Ok, this one is a stunner. And he got into office....how?? What is the matter with voters who would vote for such a dunce?
While we're on the subject, where does it say you have to win elections?
No one.
How post-modern and PC of Hagel. Maybe we could get Honorable Mention just for showing up?
Speechless.
What does ‘winning in Iraq’ actually mean?
When we fought the Second World War, winning was clearly defined (unconditional surrender of the Nazi Regime and the Tojo Regime).
We have the same problem in Iraq that we had in Vietnam - fuzzily defined objectives in a War of choice. We never fully outlined what ‘winning in Vietnam’ meant. We used metrics such as ‘number of enemies killed’ etc.
FDR had his fireside chats where he explained to the American people what exactly was being done. Churchill explained why the war had to be fought.
There has been a failure of communication, competence and imagination by this adminstration. How do we explain to the American people that five years of American occupation have tipped the strategic balance in favour of the Iranians? How do we explain to the American people that while senior American politicians sneak into Iraq unannounced, Ahmadinejad visits Iraq with full fanfare?
How do we explain to the American people that American blood has been shed to support a constitution that blatantly supports Islam as the source of law, that discriminates against Iraqi christians and Iraqi women? How do we explain to them that the ruling party in Iraq are allies of the Iranian regime?
Yes Saddam is gone, good. But did we bite off more than we could chew?
Now those who imagine that we will stay in Iraq the same way we stayed in Korea and Japan - forget it. Arabs are neither Koreans nor Japanese. Arabs do not like to be occupied by anyone for an extended period of time (just ask the Israelis).
We need to find a way to resolve this situation, quickly (use proxies if necessary) and get the hell out. Arabia is a ‘tar baby’.
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