In retrospect, the invasion of Iraq to remove Saddam and his sons was probably right. Only after “mission accomplished” banner, we should had gotten the hell out and left the Ba’athist Army in charge of Iraq. The mess afterwards was not our problem.
The Ba'athist Army dissolved, leaving the country wide open for Iran. That was the problem, but it was also an opportunity we blew big-time. If we went in there, we should have had a plan to sucker the Mullahs into letting us finish the job. We'd have saved a lot of money.
The annihilation of Baath socialism in Iraq was right, and it is right in Syria too.