Joe Biden: The Surge Is A Failure

WASHINGTON — A leading Democrat on Saturday declared last year's troop buildup in Iraq a failure. Sen. Joe Biden, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said the military push didn't succeed because U.S. troops remain committed there in large numbers and political reconciliation has not been achieved. "The purpose of the surge was to bring violence in Iraq down so that its leaders could come together politically," said Biden, D-Del., in this week's Democratic radio address. "Violence has come down, but the Iraqis have not come together." He later added, "There is little evidence the Iraqis will settle their differences peacefully any time soon." Biden offered an early rebuttal to next week's testimony by Gen. David Petraeus, the top military commander in Iraq, and Ryan Crocker, the U.S. ambassador there. Petraeus and Crocker are expected to say the recent buildup in troops has succeeded in improving security. But they also likely will say that a period of assessment is needed this summer before officials can decide whether troop withdrawals can continue. Democrats have called this approach unacceptable and said they would pursue an alternative policy through legislation. They said their focus will be on restoring the strength of the Army and Marines and refocusing the nation's resources on fighting terrorists in Afghanistan. "I believe the president has no strategy for success in Iraq," Biden said. "His plan is to muddle through, and hand the problem off to his successor." Republicans say they are satisfied with the recent drop in violence and that more time is needed to improve the situation there.

Comments

[iratior]

Up until two weeks ago, the administration had been able to create at least the appearance that the surge was working. Baghdad had been ethnically cleansed of many of its Sunnis, whom the occupation under Bremer had treated much worse, and therefore made much more rebellious, than the Shi'ites. Moqtada al-Sadr, the Shi'ite Mahdi army leader, had declared a cease-fire. Al Qaeda fell out of favor in rural areas, because of doing something hardly possible: treating the natives worse than Bremer did. . But the violence of the past two weeks spoiled it all. Nouri al-Maliki, doubtless with White House encouragement, has tried to be at once dictator and puppet. Now, to attempt to crush the Mahdi army, he and Petraeus have the inestimable pleasure of house-to-house fighting in Sadr City and Basra. Joe Biden certainly picked the right psychological moment to say the truth: THE SURGE HAS FAILED.

[LizM]

Actually, Joe Biden has been speaking the truth about Iraq long before most people in this country became the least bit interested or concerned about US foreign policy. The problem has always been, and continues to be, that not enough people have bothered to pay attention.

[JohnTalbutt]

Biden is firmly in the ignoble ranks of those who voted for the war but later made criticism about how it was conducted. Biden's idea about the three autonomous provinces was one of the stupidest or most disengeneous. Now he believes that the Iraqis need better training. Millions of Iraqis, both Sunni and Shite have military training and combat experience and served together in the Iraqi Army.

We need to just get out. Identify those Iraqis who will be considered Quislings and provide for their safety. Then give the military the mission to withdraw as expeditiously as can be safely done.

[LizM]

You can count yourself among the ranks of those who need to read beyond the title of a resolution to understand what is going on here. But, you have lots of company!

[research]

End America's Goddamn Iraq Invasion and occupation War Crime NOW!

[fightorleave2]

No, now, after 5 years, we need a "period of assessment." The Iraq War has now officially become a freakin' joke! I can't believe I'm saying that, but it's true. The war is a joke. A bad joke, but a joke nonetheless.

[sodakhic]

Those liberal Dems really got us out of Iraq after the 2006 elections. Can you say imcompetent?

[research]

the DLC dems are Corrupt.

DLC=corporatist=Clintons=fascist=GOP=war forever

[timothe]

Once again, a Democratic senator is playing politics with our troops. All he wants to do is hang the war around Bush's neck because he knows none of the three candidates will remove the troops during their first term. It didn't work the other 58 times they tried it and it's not going to work this time either.

[LizM]

Your comments betray an incredible ignorance.

[GPRogueCowboy]

Over the past 2 weeks there has been a Major Uptick in Violence.

None of it has been attributed to Al Qaida.

Why are we there?
Are we joining the CIVIL WAR?
Which Side are we fighting for?
Sunni's that used to be Insurgents or part of Sadamm's Army and now Our Awakening Force?
The Shia controlled government?
The Mahdi Army?
The "THUGS? in Basra, Baghdad and Mosel?

I thought the LATEST REASON for staying in Iraq was to DEFEAT Al Qaeda there so they
do not come here to kill Americans.
Between the Allied Force of 160,000, the Awakening Force of 70,000 and the 430,000 Iraqi
Security Forces (660,000 Total) shouldn't we be focusing on the remaining 6000 Al Qaeda Terrorists? Apparently we have killed or captured 4000 Al Qaeda over the past couple years.
So if we stay focused 100 years will not be necessary.

http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5g6Wvx25P1oVNBEjTF_X7wJmBq8SQ

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7333099.stm

http://blogs.usatoday.com/ondeadline/2008/04/report-more-tha.html

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23977964/

[JohnTalbutt]

For those who have observed that the Mahdi army and the Sunnis are in concert. the joke is that al-Sadr started the current uprising because Bush slowed down on the bribes to the Sunnis and he started missing arms shipments.

Millions of Iraqis served in the Iraqi army, that army was integrated with Sunni and Shite through the general officer level. They got extensive combat experience fighting Iran. Yet the American public is being told some B.S. that we need to train the Iraqi army in order to stabilize the country.

Just get on the bus, Gus.

[sodakhic]

I couldn"t have said it better.The senate has a 22% approval. Can you say worse than Bush?

[research]

I can be disgusted with the DLC dem cowardice in refusing to end America's goddamn Iraq invasion and occupation war crime, but the real enemy is:

The rethugs=GOP=Conservatives=BushCo=fascists=McCain

[dr4Will]

Gee,McCan't and bush and lieberjew and gramm said it works,freedom is near!! get out before bush and the boys try to keep us their thirty more years---think American , not Iraq

[JerryTheAngel]

We can't afford this war for another 5 or 10 years. Everyone outside of the Make Believe World the war criminals live in, reality has set in across the board. Military experts who know the numbers and can crunch them, Senators and Congressman who face re-election in the fall.

The only question is will the American people step up and do the right thing on election day. Even with the very tough economy conditions on the minds of most people, we CANNOT forget our brave troops who need to come home. We need to give them a huge ticker tape parade all across this country and then spend the money to help heal them.

[GrammyinPA]

Senator Biden is absolutely correct. Sadly, he is the person who should be our nominee for the Presidency. However, the media (Russert, Tweety, etc.) along with HuffPo decided that our candidates should be either a Black Man or a Woman. This would make history, Right??

IF Senator Biden had recieved the same exposure and promotion as Obama/Hillary recieved, people would then know his exceptional experience and what a true leader he could have been.
So sad, that in a Great country like ours, the presidency is a popularity contest.

[ErikW65]

It's fine with me if you want to bash the corporate media, but with regard to who decided which candidates should drop out, the Dem Primary voters did have a lot to do with it, no?

Biden got tons of media exposure. The problem was, from the day he announced his candidacy, he started putting his foot in his mouth. Again.

[YankeeCanuck]

It was not the primary, but the lazy media. I watched them talk about "all THREE Democratic candidates" last May when there were EIGHT. Biden and Dodd, both champions of human rights, well versed in constitutional law and foreign relations were largely ignored by the media. Same goes for Richardson and Kucinich, both candidates of substance-- not of money and celebrity. All these candidates were given little time and/or asked asinine questions in the debates-- if you watched them.

Biden has been known to put his foot in his mouth on occasion-- but he is also know for his eloquence, prodigious knowledge, and high standard of ethics.

We need to perform our due diligence on our electoral process, and early on. We tend to get the president we deserve rather than the one we need. Erik, it's good to question, but read a little more.

[GrammyinPA]

And you are saying..........none of the other candidates have made any mis-statements??

The preacher and Obama's comments; the abortion question comment, etc.
Hillary and the trip to Bosnia, etc.
McCain and his numerous gaffes on Irag, etc.

The Dem voters made their choice on the hype fed to them by the media; not too smart.

Get REAL this election is a popularity contest.

[DerekRC]

I wonder where the term "DEFEATOCRAT" came from?

[ErikW65]

I'll bet you still think we could have won in 'Nam, were it not for the US Leftists.

[2008WakingFromaNightmare]

It comes from a group of morons unable to argue based on facts. The strategy entails forming cute little terms in black and white in response to the average American's inability to tolerate complex problems. This enables much of the population to bury their head in the sand and ignore real problems and dismiss reality with ill conceived perceptions.

[JohnTalbutt]

Take a whiff of your fingers and I think you can figure out where it came from.

[marthamay]

All I notice about this "Huffington Post" is that all it has is bad news. Nothing good or uplifiting about anything. No wonder why you libs are so miserable. You sit here and read this nonsense and you get depressed and confused. You think everything is as miserable as you are. Wake up and smell the roses and get out of your house and enjoy your life. This is the most depressing ANTI-GOOD NEWS, nonsense I have ever read. Now Im not saying everything is great, but not everything is as miserable and sad as this website says it is. You people need professional help if this is what you read everyday. REALLY get out and smell some fresh air.

[Canaris]

Yeah, the future's so bright, I gotta wear shades.

[marthamay]

Your right it is!! you just have to go out and get off the computer and live life!!!!

[jfor]

Yes, I forget how uplifting Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity and Bill Oreilly are. Come on you gotta do better than that.

[marthamay]

I didnt say anything about those people, why is it that you thrive on such negativity? Everything is so bad and bleek for you. Don't you have anything to be happy about? Family, friends? anything? I just noticed how this website is all about "bad news" even if it isn't bad, they spin it "bad". Is this how you people live, raise your children, to be so unhappy and depressing? Do you have anything good in your lives? Go outside and get some fresh air, talk a walk, go to the beach. ANything just get out of your depressing box of bad news.

[Stokes]

It seems to me that you are the one who is negative. Ask the Iraq citizens and the troops about the fresh air they can breathe in since Bush and Cheney took over. GET REAL,NEO!

[jerrypenguin]

Not all people are riding along in a hermetically sealed happy cocoon. For those in a happy cocoon, reality may not even rattle their tea cups. Some people exist and experience within reality's blood and guts. Such experiences may not make a person happy. However, the person may acquire some wisdom.

[sodakhic]

The libs are just one pay check away from living on the street and having to stand in soup lines.That is depressing for them.

[Trueheart]

Martha, my dear,

Step outside and join me on the hurricane-ravaged Gulf Coast; join me in devastated Heartland communities; join me in any major US city where less than 50% of high school students complete their educations; join me in Northern New England where industry has disappeared, and food pantries can't keep up with the numbers of hungry families; join me in any small town in the USA where young mothers and fathers who joined the National Guard and got shipped off to the Middle East have never returned; join me and take a deep breath. Hard times for some of us, Martha. Soon there will be hard times for ALL of us.

TALE OF TWO CITIES by Charles Dickens
Chapter I: The Period
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way--in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only.

[marthamay]

You do not need to tell me about any of those things you mentioned. I understand and live all of these things just like you say you do. What I am saying is that this website has nothing but negative bad news. ANd in my life, maybe not in yours, but there is GOOD, not just good but beautiful wonderful things that I enjoy. I am not one to wish bad on other people like you did in your post. That just proves how unhappy and unfullfilled your life is. To wish "hard times for all of us" is a pathetic way to live.

What I wish for you is to have a happy fulfilled life. In all these very bad things you mentioned I can name 1000 more good happy things. It is the way you look at life. Yours I can only hope is not as bad as you say it is.

[StillAmused]

"Republicans say they are satisfied with the recent drop in violence" in Iraq -- since, y'know, only Iraqis are affected -- but went on to complain bitterly about incidents of unapproved house colors within, and visible homeless people near, their gated communities.

[toucan]

I never thought the surge was legitimate, just another Bush ploy to take the heat off. In a civil war the number of foreign fighters (American forces) will only prolong what the Iraqis have to do for themselves.

[Imabachi]

I opine that the "Surge" is just another aspect of the long-held Republican desire to keep our troops in Iraq as long as possible so as to keep the government so starved of money that it cannot do anything about the domestic situation; i.e. the social programs (which they've always hated), the energy problem/s (of course we do subsidize Big Oil to the tune of $18 billion a year and Big Agriculture with subsidies going to people who live in Manhattan, New York City. A pittance goes to solar and wind, two of the most obvious sources of clean, renewable, sustainable energy.)

The "Surge" isn't working 'cause we invaded a coungtry without due, just cause and the Iraqis are fighting us just as we'd fight them if they invaded us.

[kfdan]

Whether you like Biden or not does not change the fact that the surge is a failure as it was intended to be! Really can you imagine what the Bush government would do if the Iraqi factions and tribal groups, all of a sudden, made peace with each other, put their government together and then, invited the U.S. government to leave! Any real peace between the different groups would suffer U.S. inspired division, if it appeared their would be too much peace!
The Iraqi military was never intended to be strong enough to fend for itself. The Iraqi government was and still is intended to be weak enough to need the U.S.. The permanent military bases and largest embassy ever built is being completed. The U.S. government only wants a smile on the face of the Iraqis to show to the rest of the world and that's it. There is no real intention by Bush or the rest of his criminal cronies to resolve the problems in Iraq. That might threaten the money train for Bush's friends.

[realpolitic]

Wouldn't it be great if the Iraqi parliament asked us to leave.

[VOTER]

Biden for Secretary of Defense, 2009!

[mamacat]

Adding more troops to the unjustified invasion and occupation of another country is not a virtue. It is a way to prolong the suffering of both the American and the Iraqi people.

Is there any doubt that the Iraqis want the occupation to end? Does anyone in their government want us there other than the head of government chosen by us?

Blind patriotism is not a virtue. Honest dissent is not a vice. Insisting on a military solution to a mistaken political decision is in the end illogical, counterproductive, and immoral. The question on the minds of most Americans is, can the American economy hold up until Bush's (and McCain's?) war is over.

I repeat, does anyone doubt that the Iraqis want us to end our occupation? If we can all agree on that point, then can we not agree on giving them back their country in a way that is agreeable to both them and to us?

The options are not, either, indefinite occupation, or, immediate about face and abandonment. Rather, why not engage with all Iraqis, for a peaceful and mutually agreeable return of the control of the country back to the people who live there? When did we start thinking like an imperial power? The Iraqis need our cooperation, as determined by them, not our dominance, as determined from the White House.

[procrustes]

And?

[LizM]

If your inquiry is directed at Senator Biden, then you shouldn't have to ask. And, if you think this blog post is giving you ANY part of the story, then you are so sadly mistaken. Do yourself a favor and check out what Senator Biden is all about - on this issue and others!