Shortly Bush will deliver a speech to coincide with the release of a 34 page strategy paper on accomplishing victory in Iraq. Reeling from low public opinion polls and widespread lack of faith in his handling of the war, he hopes to set the record straight.
The report is designed for public consumption — it is composed entirely of bullit points. I don’t trust any policy report that is all bullit points.
It used and ignored history as the reason the administration has not set a timetable. “No war has ever been won on a timetable and neither will this one.” Well no country has ever successfully dominated Iraq permanently.
It goes on to say some quite Rumsfeldian things like:
“But lack of a timetable does not mean our posture in Iraq (both military and civilian) will remain static over time. As conditions change, our posture will change.” Well obviously. This is just a fancy way of saying nothing.
No need to worry about any hands being tied by this new strategy: “While our military presence may become less visible, it will remain lethal and decisive, able to confront the enemy wherever it may organize.” So it will still be lethal? Then, we will still protest.
All in all, the report does not say anything new. It just re-articulates the same old views. We can expect more of the same thing. Re-marketing it in bullit points and a nice cover will not change the reality of a doomed strategy.
The report also says, “Our mission in Iraq is to win the war. Our troops will return home when that mission is complete.” That reminds me of this:
The problem is there never was a straightforward mission, nor a clear reason.
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