So you say. Yawn.
You accuse me time and time again of aiding the enemy by posting the truth about the Iraqi war, by disagreeing with Bush. So let's see how some elected and military officials feel (link below):
We'll start with Republican Senator Chuck Hagel-
"In an interview late last week with U.S. News Senior Writer Kevin Whitelaw, Republican Sen. Chuck Hagel of Nebraska blasted the Bush administration's performance in the Iraq operation, using some of his strongest language yet [Hit by friendly fire (6/27/05)]. "Things aren't getting better; they're getting worse. The White House is completely disconnected from reality," he said. "It's like they're just making it up as they go along. The reality is, we're losing in Iraq."
Below are additional excerpts from the Hagel interview:
On his relations with others in the GOP:
"I was probably the first senator questioning this before we even went in. I got beat up pretty good by my own party and the White House that I was not a loyal Republican. When you talk about committing a nation to war and the consequences that follow, it's beyond party loyalty."
On mistakes made in Iraq:
"We didn't plan right, we didn't know what we were getting into, and we weren't prepared. It's borne out in what's going on and the mess that we're in today."
"We made basic mistakes going into Iraq from the beginning. We never had enough troops going in. We should have had at least double or triple. There was one bad decision after another. [One] bad decision was allowing Don Rumsfeld and the Pentagon to run postwar Iraq."
On Vice President Cheney's recent remark that the insurgency is in its "last throes":
"I don't know where the vice president is getting his information from. It's not where I'm getting mine from. This administration at the top–the civilian leaders–is disconnected from what's going on."
On a bipartisan House bill calling for a timetable for withdrawal:
"When you see manifestations of that kind of doubt and concern being brought to the floor of the House, it's pretty clear what's going on. Many of my colleagues are very concerned and very worried. The American people keep going the other way on this. There is a clear manifestation of the concern and the doubt that's breaking out all over."
On what happens next:
"I think what we're in for is really framing up the next six months. You've got some absolutely critical deadlines that the Iraqi government and this government have committed to. Those timelines must be maintained."
"We are where we are. We're not going to go back and unwind all the bad decisions. I think we've got about six months. If things don't start to turn around in six months, then it may be too late. I think it's that serious."
On U.S. troops:
"We keep putting our forces who are over there in these impossible situations, asking them to do these impossible things when there's not enough force structure over there and there never was enough force structure."
"It's an absolute joke to say that we have a coalition of the willing."
Then go to Col Mike Turner (Retired):
"For those appalled by the Bush Administration's inability to formulate a coherent policy in Iraq, the events of the past few weeks have taken on an ominous significance. It was profoundly disturbing to see the president and senior administration officials so inappropriately giddy over a six-point jump in the Bush's approval rating following the death of Abu Mussab Al Zarqawi. Seasoned warfighters and diplomats understood the purely symbolic nature of that event, and the dramatic rise in sectarian violence last week, including the kidnapping last Saturday of the head of the Iraqi Olympic Committee and at least 30 others, only confirmed fears that the downward spiral into civil war continues unabated. At the same time, the increase in alleged incidents of U.S. atrocities in Iraq suggests that American forces are finding it difficult to maintain strict unit discipline in an increasingly dangerous and deteriorating security environment. And the demands of Iraq have left the White House ill-prepared to deal with the rapidly escalating Israeli-Arab violence in Gaza and Lebanon.
Myth #1: U.S. forces will be withdrawn when military commanders determine the Iraqis are capable of maintaining their own security. This is utter nonsense, and I would be willing to bet a substantial sum that every military planner in the Pentagon knows it. Karl Rove will determine the timing of any pullout. The Republican Party is terrified of Iraq, and Rove, as the architect of the 2008 GOP presidential campaign strategy, will time the withdrawal of U.S. forces precisely to coincide with that election. That means U.S. forces will be reduced to an "acceptable threshold" sometime during the spring or summer of 2008. The key for Rove will be to draw down U.S. troop levels to a size that's small enough to plausibly say the U.S. is getting out, while still large enough to maintain some semblance of control over Iraq. Put more succinctly, the war is now being fought to try to ensure a Republican victory in November of 2008. While this seems both obscene and outrageous, one need only watch the drawdown schedule evolve. My bet is that the critical threshold will be 20-50,000 troops in country by the summer of 2008."
More at the link:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/13906475/site/newsweek/
And decorated Marine and Democratic Congressman John Murtha:
"The war in Iraq is not going as advertised. It is a flawed policy wrapped in illusion. The American public is way ahead of us. The United States and coalition troops have done all they can in Iraq, but it is time for a change in direction. Our military is suffering. The future of our country is at risk. We can not continue on the present course. It is evident that continued military action in Iraq is not in the best interest of the United States of America, the Iraqi people or the Persian Gulf Region.
General Casey said in a September 2005 Hearing, “the perception of occupation in Iraq is a major driving force behind the insurgency.” General Abizaid said on the same date, “Reducing the size and visibility of the coalition forces in Iraq is a part of our counterinsurgency strategy.”
For 2 ½ years I have been concerned about the U.S. policy and the plan in Iraq. I have addressed my concerns with the Administration and the Pentagon and have spoken out in public about my concerns. The main reason for going to war has been discredited. A few days before the start of the war I was in Kuwait – the military drew a red line around Baghdad and said when U.S. forces cross that line they will be attacked by the Iraqis with Weapons of Mass Destruction – but the US forces said they were prepared. They had well trained forces with the appropriate protective gear.
We spend more money on Intelligence than all the countries in the world together, and more on Intelligence than most countries GDP. But the intelligence concerning Iraq was wrong. It is not a world intelligence failure. It is a U.S. intelligence failure and the way that intelligence was misused.
I have been visiting our wounded troops at Bethesda and Walter Reed hospitals almost every week since the beginning of the War. And what demoralizes them is going to war with not enough troops and equipment to make the transition to peace; the devastation caused by IEDs; being deployed to Iraq when their homes have been ravaged by hurricanes; being on their second or third deployment and leaving their families behind without a network of support.
The threat posed by terrorism is real, but we have other threats that cannot be ignored. We must be prepared to face all threats. The future of our military is at risk. Our military and their families are stretched thin. Many say that the Army is broken. Some of our troops are on their third deployment. Recruitment is down, even as our military has lowered its standards. Defense budgets are being cut. Personnel costs are skyrocketing, particularly in health care. Choices will have to be made. We can not allow promises we have made to our military families in terms of service benefits, in terms of their health care, to be negotiated away. Procurement programs that ensure our military dominance cannot be negotiated away. We must be prepared. The war in Iraq has caused huge shortfalls at our bases in the U.S.
Much of our ground equipment is worn out and in need of either serious overhaul or replacement. George Washington said, “To be prepared for war is one of the most effective means of preserving peace.” We must rebuild our Army. Our deficit is growing out of control. The Director of the Congressional Budget Office recently admitted to being “terrified” about the budget deficit in the coming decades. This is the first prolonged war we have fought with three years of tax cuts, without full mobilization of American industry and without a draft. The burden of this war has not been shared equally; the military and their families are shouldering this burden.
Our military has been fighting a war in Iraq for over two and a half years. Our military has accomplished its mission and done its duty. Our military captured Saddam Hussein, and captured or killed his closest associates. But the war continues to intensify. Deaths and injuries are growing, with over 2,079 confirmed American deaths. Over 15,500 have been seriously injured and it is estimated that over 50,000 will suffer from battle fatigue. There have been reports of at least 30,000 Iraqi civilian deaths.
I just recently visited Anbar Province Iraq in order to assess the conditions on the ground. Last May 2005, as part of the Emergency Supplemental Spending Bill, the House included the Moran Amendment, which was accepted in Conference, and which required the Secretary of Defense to submit quarterly reports to Congress in order to more accurately measure stability and security in Iraq. We have now received two reports. I am disturbed by the findings in key indicator areas. Oil production and energy production are below pre-war levels. Our reconstruction efforts have been crippled by the security situation. Only $9 billion of the $18 billion appropriated for reconstruction has been spent. Unemployment remains at about 60 percent. Clean water is scarce. Only $500 million of the $2.2 billion appropriated for water projects has been spent. And most importantly, insurgent incidents have increased from about 150 per week to over 700 in the last year. Instead of attacks going down over time and with the addition of more troops, attacks have grown dramatically. Since the revelations at Abu Ghraib, American casualties have doubled. An annual State Department report in 2004 indicated a sharp increase in global terrorism.
I said over a year ago, and now the military and the Administration agrees, Iraq can not be won “militarily.” I said two years ago, the key to progress in Iraq is to Iraqitize, Internationalize and Energize. I believe the same today. But I have concluded that the presence of U.S. troops in Iraq is impeding this progress.
Our troops have become the primary target of the insurgency. They are united against U.S. forces and we have become a catalyst for violence. U.S. troops are the common enemy of the Sunnis, Saddamists and foreign jihadists. I believe with a U.S. troop redeployment, the Iraqi security forces will be incentivized to take control. A poll recently conducted shows that over 80% of Iraqis are strongly opposed to the presence of coalition troops, and about 45% of the Iraqi population believe attacks against American troops are justified. I believe we need to turn Iraq over to the Iraqis.
I believe before the Iraqi elections, scheduled for mid December, the Iraqi people and the emerging government must be put on notice that the United States will immediately redeploy. All of Iraq must know that Iraq is free. Free from United States occupation. I believe this will send a signal to the Sunnis to join the political process for the good of a “free” Iraq.
My plan calls:
To immediately redeploy U.S. troops consistent with the safety of U.S. forces.
To create a quick reaction force in the region.
To create an over- the- horizon presence of Marines.
To diplomatically pursue security and stability in Iraq
This war needs to be personalized. As I said before I have visited with the severely wounded of this war. They are suffering.
Because we in Congress are charged with sending our sons and daughters into battle, it is our responsibility, our OBLIGATION to speak out for them. That’s why I am speaking out.
Our military has done everything that has been asked of them, the U.S. can not accomplish anything further in Iraq militarily. IT IS TIME TO BRING THEM HOME."
http://www.house.gov/apps/list/press/pa12_murtha/pr051117iraq.html
These guys are elected officials and a professional military man. Their comments were released to the public and have been around for anyone to read. Colonel Turner is a former Middle East planner for the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, yet argues that the only sensible course in Iraq is an immediate withdrawal of most U.S. forces, just like I do. I think I'm in pretty good company. Want more? I can dig up plenty more that would agree with these three.