Posted on 07/21/2015 3:08:42 PM PDT by jazusamo
EXCLUSIVE: The Army’s top officer told Fox News Tuesday it’s “frustrating” to watch the gains he helped achieve in Iraq disintegrate at the hands of the Islamic State, saying in an exit interview that the chaos now unfolding “might have been prevented” had the U.S. stayed more engaged.
Army Chief of Staff Gen. Ray Odierno, weeks away from retirement after 39 years in uniform, spent more time in Iraq than any other U.S. Army general -- more than four years, the last two as top commander. He is widely viewed as a key architect of the Iraq surge.
In an exclusive interview with Fox News, the general tackled a range of topics, from the Iran nuclear deal to the deep cuts to U.S. Army troop levels. But Odierno had pointed words on the rise of ISIS in Iraq and Syria – suggesting it didn’t have to be this way.
“It's frustrating to watch it,” Odierno said. “I go back to the work we did in 2007, 2008, 2009, and 2010 and we got it to a place that was really good. Violence was low, the economy was growing, politics looked like it was heading in the right direction.”
Odierno said the fall of large parts of Iraq was not inevitable, reiterating concerns about the pace of the U.S. troop withdrawal there.
“If we had stayed a little more engaged, I think maybe it might have been prevented,” he said. “I've always believed the United States played the role of honest broker between all the groups and when we pulled ourselves out, we lost that role.”
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
What possible reason would an enemy of America like Obama could have for doing that?
By not starting it in the first place?
It's CLEAR whose side he is on, and becomes more clear as he nears the end of his final term (hopefully).
Great Ray, tell us why everyone at your level supported them to begin with?
Lindsey Graham and others STILL have a hard-on to get us involved in Syria on the side of ISIS.
And Ray, the only way to stop the rise of ISIS would have been a) kill Al-Qeada and b) destroy their minions in our government..
Right on, 0bama is proud.
Ya know, while I would live to jump on the “Obama sux” bandwagon on this article too, I have to wonder just how damn long Odierno would expect us to have stayed in Iraq with thousands of boots on the ground? 5 more years? 10?
Fact is - unless we increased and escalated the costs in lives and money - ISIS was a guarantee.
Didn’t Odierno just announce that recruiters would not be armed and that they should report for work in civies and close the blinds?
He is following orders, I guess.
It sure sounds like a solution that came from the Rainbow Hut.
A-Freaking-Men!
Especially point b).
There ain't much we can do about ISIS over there. But to compound and increase the muzzie problems by ENCOURAGING it here with the Obama-holes here in the US is too freaking much!
Really?
Even with weeks away from retirement - a statement like that shows he really is a load swallowing toadie.
In other words, 0 could have stopped them if he had wanted to.
O created them.
Instead, Obama and his handlers FUNDED ISIS’s rise...
No S#!+ Sherlock, and with a president who wasn’t in cahoots with them we would have.
Given his policies towards Israel, towards Libya, Egypt, Syria, ISIS etc etc I have concluded his bungling of Iraq with subsequent rise of ISIS was intentional.
Worse, we created this atrocity.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3293153/posts
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3293083/posts
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/3292944/posts
Shhhhhhhhh....
Obama is sleeping. Crafting good deals for the enemies of the United States is hard work.
“I have concluded his bungling of Iraq with subsequent rise of ISIS was intentional.”
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A big ol’ +1 on that. Intentional.
Deliberate and with malice aforethought.
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