Cut and Run Republican?
By Justin Gardner | Related entries in Foreign Policy, WarJohn Warner (R-Va) is the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee. In other words, he’s no shrinking violet. So how do you read the following?
Said Warner: “It seems to me the situation is simply drifting sideways It was a markedly different trip from ones before. We just did not have the freedom and ability to travel where I have been before.”Warner said the United States should set a timetable of 60 to 90 days, and if things don’t improve, he suggested a “change of course” would be appropriate.
People, things won’t change in the next 3 months. They just won’t. So is this “change of course” some way of saying we’re going to pull out if the Iraqi government can’t get their house in order?
Personally, while I feel it’s risky, a “more stick/less carrot” approach may indeed be the way to go when dealing with Iraq. Obviously our poor lack of planning for the peace is the majority reason why things are getting so out of hand over there, but if we do set some sort of timetable, the Iraqi politicians may get nervous. This strategy could light a fire under their asses. BUT…it’s a helluva chance, and we’d be bluffing with Iraqi lives.
Honestly, though, what else can we do? More troops seem unrealistic at this point, even though I think that’s the right approach.
Again, what else can we do?
This entry was posted on Friday, October 6th, 2006 and is filed under Foreign Policy, War. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
October 6th, 2006 at 2:43 pm
Huh…sounds to me like he’s saying:
“Let’s wait to do anything until after the election so when we finally admit we have no choice but to cut and run we’ll have a few years before it can kill us in the polls”
October 6th, 2006 at 2:58 pm
I think that’s a fairly cynical way to read it. I understand why, but it still takes a fairly honest voice to come out and say things are going badly. He’s essentially bucking his own party line, at least the Administration’s.
However, I agree….public “truth to power” declarations are coming REALLY late in the game…but at least they’re coming at all.
October 6th, 2006 at 5:43 pm
Warner is one of the better Senators and I commend him for admitting that the situation is poor in Iraq. However, why say we should wait 60-90 days before deciding to change course? Why not demand a change of course now? It’s gotta be the elections. Nothing will happen until after the elections because no Republican is going to risk rocking the boat too much until they see how things sort out.
October 6th, 2006 at 8:13 pm
How much do any of us really know about the tactical operations and troop movements on the ground in iraq, or what the major political issues that are facing local arabs in their towns or cities across Iraq, not just in Bagdhad? Everybody acts as if they know all the details about what’s really going on in iraq, when in reality, all we are being shown is 30 second soundbites, images of blown out cars and the number of G.I deaths. “The Sunnis and Shi’as are fighting” is what we constantly hear but nobody really knows what that means, nor how it is actually different from what has been going on since 2003.
When was the last time you heard about Ramadi, or Najaf, or Fallujah? Are Baathists and former Saddam henchmen still attacking U.S. soldiers because they think they will come to power again? Are terrorists flooding across the Syrian border the way they were able to do 18 months ago?
The course has been changing constantly over the past 3 years, but armchair generals like us don’t realize it because have no attention span or sense of patience.
As for Warner, things are getting rather political this time of year and Iraq is unpopular so doesn’t suprise me that he would say something like this. Remember, John Kerry is also on the Senate Armed Services Committee. What does he mean by “have a change of course” after 90 days anyway? Does he mean withdrawal to Okinawa?
October 7th, 2006 at 9:37 am
Well, this would be like John Kerry saying something like “I know I’ve said we should leave Iraq, but given the situation, I think we should give the Iraqi government 60-90 days and then possibly change course, and ALL options are on the table.” Obviously, that could mean anything, but it sounds like he could be suggesting something that was the opposite of what we publicly called for before.
October 8th, 2006 at 10:03 pm
[...] Backing up what John Warner said on Friday, James Baker is publicly acknowledging that things have to change in Iraq…and soon. [...]