Posted on 01/09/2007 12:27:58 PM PST by areafiftyone
WASHINGTON - A first wave of additional U.S. troops will go into Iraq before the end of the month under President Bush's new plan, a senior defense official said Tuesday.
Up to 20,000 troops will be put on alert and be prepared to deploy under the president's plan, but the increase in forces on the ground will be gradual, said the official, who requested anonymity because the plans have not yet been announced.
Moving first would be the 2nd Brigade, 82nd Airborne Division, which is in Kuwait and poised to deploy quickly into Iraq.
I always look forward to your reality checks. Stay safe, L.T.
Beautifully stated, FSE. You've perfectly expressed the views I hold, but as I don't have your military and freeper credentials, I figured I'd be eviscerated for saying so.
I think we should send Pelosi with her new "gavel" over to Iraq and maybe she can knock out the enemy so they won't be a burden to the U.S.
> "Our military can't fire their weapons on the enemy. We virtually can only return fire when we see someone shooting at us, and that may be too late. That's not how you fight a war."...
Amen. Won't somebody with the power unshackle our military to do the job that they need to do??? 20,000 or 200,000 won't make a damn bit of difference if we cut them off at the knees and prosecute those soldiers who fight as if we are in a war.
My worry is that we are sending 20,000 more, bound and gagged, trussed up for the slaughter.
Prayers prayers and more prayers.
I wish a reality-checker like you had the ear of the president right now--- it doesn't look like that is the case right now.
What we need is far more aggressive tactics. More men does nothing if those men aren't allowed to destroy the enemy with extreme prejudice.
Notice, however, that Snow did NOT say "opinion polls", as you suggest he did. Snow said the President wouldn't make policy based on "public opinion", which suggests the actual will of the American people, not some "poll". President Bush is absolutely the most arrogant, prideful man to ever sit in the Oval Office; he thinks it's an act of shame to listen to what others have to say, and perhaps, (oh Heaven forbid), even give it serious consideration.
That aside, the error-prone Bush was told by dozens of Generals, (many high ranking, including Sec. Powell, a 4-star general), that he needed more troops. It was Rumsfeld, a politician, who kept the troop numbers down in a bid to keep the detractors of this war at bay. But the military leaders detested Rumsfeld for his micro management of this war, and they probably disliked Bush as well for playing politics with their men.
In any case, Bush today finally admitted that he was wrong to fight this war with so few troops, something that everyone, including the Girl Scout Troops figured out years ago. But as I said in an earlier post, another mere 20,000 still won't make any significant difference, he needs tens of thousands more yet to squash the resistence in a hurry, and then get on to Iran, where the real threat lies. Iraq is no longer a threat, it's just Bush's personal legacy now, which is why he's so hung up on staying there instead of taking out Ahmadinejad and his nuke programs.
Breaking News on MSNBC:
The President will announce and increase of 21,500 troops for Iraq. 17,500 for Baghdad proper and 4,000 for Anbar Province.
The President just finished a meeting with Bigs in the administration and many of the media heavys were there. Brian Williams is the source of this, I believe.
Six billion, eight hundred million dollars for the news strategy.
and the new strategy
Hope it's not fatal, just enough to get him out of the senate (smile).
I'll leave you to think that President Bush has to follow the polls (that's how 'public opinion' is assessed) to believe as Lincoln did, that the government was of and by the people.
I, as a person, voted for him to make decisions based on the knowledge he has that I don't have. I just don't happen to think that MSNBC online polls negate my choice.
>>You are right about the American people having voted for Jorge Bush,<,
Just so you know, Jim Robinson has specifically stated that you are NOT to refer to the President by this name.
And you might also ask that once you pacify the enemy how do you keep them that way for the next number of years. Good post FSE.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.