Iraq: The Elephant in the Room

Earlier this week, I was unable to attend NPR's Democratic forum in Iowa because I was attending a funeral. When I read the transcript, however, I was shocked that there was almost no real discussion of the single most important issue facing our county: Iraq.

No other single problem is as crippling to this country right now as the war in Iraq. Our ongoing troop presence is preventing a real Iraqi reconciliation. Maintaining 170,000 troops in Iraq not only stretches our military to the breaking point, it keeps us from having the troops available to deal with other emerging crises -- whether it is peace keeping or disaster response.

We are spending upwards of $10 billion dollars a month in Iraq.

It is folly to believe we can continue on this path and conduct the necessary overhauls to children's insurance, health care, and our schools. It will be almost impossible to deal with global warming and lead the world in a new energy revolution while weighed down by the financial and diplomatic costs of the on-going war in Iraq.

We can't let ending the war become the "forgotten issue" in this campaign, and we can't let it continue. The costs are just too high.

Unfortunately, my fellow candidates seem content with leaving the issue behind. Senators Clinton, Obama and Edwards still mention ending the war - but will not unequivocally commit to getting all troops out quickly (and lets be clear - all troops includes non-combat troops, combat strike teams, or any other spin-variation of "troops" falling under our military command in Iraq).

And they will not commit to getting all of the troops out by 2013. 2013 is six more years of war. Six more years of having our hands tied economically and our foreign policy crippled by a war that should have been ended THIS year.

Six more years is too long to wait. Our new website www.2013istoolate.com lays it out clearly: waiting for 2013 is unacceptable - the cost is just too high.

We cannot let cynicism get the best of us - even though the Congressional leadership have not done what we elected them to do and ended this war. We cannot give up. And we cannot give in to misleading media and White House spin that trumpets "the surge is working."

It isn't. The conventional wisdom, that after just a few months of declining casualty rates, victory is around the corner is rosy-eyed nonsense. If you listen to Washington insiders, we've turned that corner again and again - so many times we may just be walking in circles.

Casualties have fallen three months in a row on nine previous occasions during the 5 years we've been in Iraq - nine times. Each time we've been fed the same lines: "Mission Accomplished," "Dead Ender," "Last Throes." On each of those nine occasions, however, casualties have risen back to newer more tragic levels.

I'm not sure who decided what number of American troop deaths is an "acceptable" cost to buy a declaration of "victory," but last month 37 American troops died. After nearly five years of war, the only "acceptable" number of deaths is zero.

I hope Senators Clinton, Edwards, and Obama have not forgotten what we all know: there is no military solution in Iraq, and as long as our troops are there we will have no political solution either. If they remembered this, they could not in good conscience duck a commitment to get our troops out by 2013.

2013 is too long to wait to do the ONE thing that will work in Iraq: getting all of our troops out quickly, leaving no residual troops behind.

Only one thing will bring long-term stability in Iraq: political progress. The stated purpose of the surge was to give Iraqi politicians the breathing room to take the necessary steps towards real reconciliation. That has not happened - and those on the ground know it. Iraq's Deputy Prime Minister, Barham Salih, last month flatly declared "There will be no reconciliation . . .this is a struggle about power," and Iraq's Vice President (and most important Sunni politician) recently echoed that with "there has been no significant progress in months."

Political progress is impossible as long as our troops are on the ground, making the status-quo possible for Iraqi politicians and leading Iraqi citizens to doubt whether we'll ever leave. There is no military solution to this problem, so our military should not be there.

In fact, the only real progress we've seen in Iraq in the recent months happened in Basra, where the removal of the British garrison has brought about a 90% decrease in violence. No occupying forces equaled less violence, and zero coalition casualties. This is the kind of change we need to see across Iraq to create the landscape for real political progress.

There is a clear answer -- to truly reduce violence and to force Iraqis to find their own political solution, we must begin immediately to withdraw all of our forces - all of them, without any residual troops left behind. There is no military solution in Iraq, and there will be no political solution while our military remains there.

Leaving troops in Iraq until 2013 is not an option - not if we want to end this war, not if we want to move forward and begin addressing problems here at home.

Ignoring this issue won't change those facts.

Comments

[underdog]

The biggest elephant in the room is a tyrannical administration that has hijacked our government.

The next largest is a complicit and worthless congress that is both impotent and un-motivated to honor their sworn duty.

The war is just a noxious cloud of flatulance issuing forth from their prominent rear ends.

[dawlishgal]

NOBODY, including the debate moderators and the candidates, is mentioning the 12 to 14 huge PERMANENT military bases that are being built in Iraq. What he bleep are these for if our government doesn't intend to stay there forever? To not object to these seems shameful. So, why didn't you mention them in your critique of the other candidates?

[rabun666]

Iraq is controlling the United States and draining us of our resources o some $2,000,000,000,000 trillion,now considered a conservative estimate.The purpose of empire is to take the resources from the colony and to control the colony, not the other way around which is what has happened with Bush. This is the DEFINITION OF A FAILED EMPIRE which is why the Soviet Union collapsed, it's colonies[Republics] drained the resources of Russia.For all their plans the PNAC imperialists forgot to include that an empire requires competent leadership and they choose Bush, which shows how competent the PNAC, the present day Mein Kampf, creators are. Bush and Cheney aren't up to doing PNAC plan for world domination.

[MagisterLudi]

"Our ongoing troop presence is preventing a real Iraqi reconciliation."

Absolutely agree. HOWEVER, the troops should remain there until the NEXT White House administration takes power. A power sharing agreement then should be negotiated and troops withdrawn in an orderly fashion within 5-6 month hence.

Bush/Cheney with their abysmal record couldn't manage the war and we cannot trust them to manage the withdrawal!
We also do not want the repeat of British withdrawal from Palestine 1947 when they just threw up their hands and left.
Arabs and the Jews are suffering to this day because of mismanaged results of that British withdrawal.
It is also difficult to gradually withdraw troops because we don't want to created bunker-mentality pockets of isolated and underpowered US bases.
If the army can't maintain initiative the casualties may begin to mount again.
At this point serious politicians should begin formulating models of withdrawal and/or compromises that will benefit both Iraqis and U.S. and will prevent Jihadists from taking over parts of the country.

[opines]

Governor Richardson:

Too many of your parties leaders were on-board with the PNAC plan to invade and occupy Iraq from the outset. And, they continue to provide funding for the criminal, near-genocidal occupation and attempted armed-robbery of Iraqi oil resources.

As long as the issue is framed as to whether or not we are "making progress", the pro-war side wins because the ever more brutal Rules of Engagement assure military progress.

Complaining about the expense is not the answer. Say it must end because it is a war crime and those who support it are war criminals. Take the gloves off. Turn up the heat.

[Purple Girl]

Granted Iraq is the 800 lb gorilla in the room when discussing domestic affairs.
However the 800 lb primate of the World conversation is too many people and not enough resources (at least on a distribution level, if not an actual level)
i saw a film in College (about 1983) by a group of scientists..The ? Club. anyway they fed the stats on the current trends of Population, Energy, Pollution, Food/ Water, Disease and the only one that if addressed would improve our chances of survival, globally- Population.
What will you do to bring the ratio of people equal to that of the available resources to sustain all properly to thus insure the future?

[ApolloSpeaks]

WHAT IS YOUR SOLUTION, GOVERNOR?

The only possible way we can induce the Maliki government to share power and oil wealth with their Sunni enemies is by putting a gun to their head and threatening a coup: threatening to forcibly replace their regime with a moderate Shiite dictatorship favorable to US interests in the region. Removing our troops from Iraq will not reform this bunch or soften their intransigence. No sooner would our troops be gone than the Maliki's and Hakims would abolish Iraq's democracy and replace it with an Islamic Republic: a Sharia Shiite dictatorship allied to Iran and its revolutionary aims in the region.

Any President who removes our troops from Iraq has to deal with the reality of a resurgent Iran, of adding to its growing power and increasing tensions with the Sunni Arab world. As President how would you remove our troops from Iraq and prevent this from happening? What is your solution? What you don't want to do is remove our troops cross your fingers and hope for the best. That could make a bad situation a 1000 times worse as the Sunni world is hell bent on stopping Iran's quest for regional hegemony.


And lastly, Governor, the decline of violence in Basra has absolutely nothing to do with the removal of British forces. This resulted from an Iran brokered truce between two warring Shiite factions: Al-Sadr's Mahdi Army and Hakim's Bader Corps. This demonstrates Iran's growing power in Iraq and that it has been the huge beneficiary of the Iraq War.

So how would a President Richardson deal with the Iran problem in Iraq? How would you counter its growing influence in that country and prevent it from becoming an Iranian base once our troops are gone?

[Counterglow]

Now that Saddam is gone and the long-oppressed Shiite majority are in the driver's seat, what kind of peace do you expect in Iraq?

Unless the U.S. plans to stay for a long, long time, you might as well get out now and advise the Sunnis to run like hell.

Just don't let them cling to the landing skids of any helicopters. That could bring back unfortunate memories.

[ljsfolly]

Gov Bill I wish people could see past the glamor and the money flow as you are the most qualified and this country is so off track and out of it's collective mind with anger, fear,dread and everything that has been done to us in the name of the administration "protecting us". So much common sense has gone out the window as fear and lies are all we have been fed for years now and while we should fear the terrorists that are real we have seen little action againest the real ones and too much attention to those blown up to intinidate us. I look back and it is so easy to see the obvious manipulations and lies but many still shut their minds off and let things go the way the have because they perceive no power as bush has stolen it. You are a good man who deserves to be heard and used wisely in places where sanity must rule. Iraq is just the killing fields and as long as bush stirs trouble we will have yet more dead as Iran goes after those troops close to home to retaliate. Iran has been quiet, very quiet while bush and cheney have lied through the reports and tapes now gone waiting for the first strike. This will be WWIII if there is no one who can stop the missles and bombs and bush.

[mamacat]

Gov. Richardson, I like what you have to say, but I don't entirely agree with you. I think we are in a jungle, surrounded by a whole lot of 800lb. guerillas, and most of them have been created by the current administration.
As you point out, there is the problem of the U.S. military being stuck in a country where the native population doesn't want us, where most Americans don't want us, and where even our senior military leaders have said our being there is making us weaker.
There is also the problem of the unimaginably large national debt. It is out of control, is causing the rapid devaluation of the U.S. dollar, and is a threat to world economic stability.
There is the threat that the looney-birds currently in the White House are going to attack Iran. Its not enough that they attacked and occupied one country that was absolutely no threat to us, the neo-cons want to do the whole thing over again to another country.
There is the problem of the vanishing middle class. The good jobs are disappearing, even while there is no shortage of jobs paying minimum wage.
There is also the problem that one our country's political parties, the Republican Party, has been subverted by the neo-cons. What used to be a party that had room for progressives, liberals, and free thinkers, has become a party that runs people out who do not adhere to a strict right-wing, conservative agenda. They are very comfortable using dirty-tricks to advance their cause, and are quickly redefining what it means to be an American - and not in a good way.
Like I said, I feel like we are surrounded by guerillas, and its not a very good feeling.

[Tellmethetruth]

Thanks Governor Richardson for being a candidate of integrity, that doesn't find it necessary to bash women and Hispanics in order to get votes. You've shown great respect for Hillary Clinton, and as such demonstrated the respect you have for women. Equally, you have shown fairminded and compassion towards undocumented workers with reasonable solutions to a national problem. You haven't resorted to the racism offered by Republicans as a solution to the presence of undocumented workers.

For that you have earned my respect and I am sure the respect of many others. Good luck on your campaign and primaries.

[GuiltyByStander]

Governor Richardson thank you for pointing out again that the war in Iraq is the key issue. This recent media punditry suggesting American's are more interested in the economy than ending the war is shocking. As you point out, an economy that is bleeding $10 Billion every month is not going to get better without a resolution to the war.

[christianhypocrites]

Gov. Richardson apparently did not get the message. We made war on Iraq so that we could control Iraq's supply of oil. Period. That's it. There is no other reason. It is THAT simple.

We will not be leaving Iraq as long as white men in suits get rich off the backs of American dead.

[Tellmethetruth]

Thanks Governor Richardson - my respect to you for keeping Iraq in the American conscience even as propaganda forces try to convince us the war is won and we are now safe and it's okeh to forget about Iraq before an election, making it easier to vote for someone with no experience in foreign policy as you yourself, Senator Biden, and Senator Dodd, and yes, even Hillary Clinton all have.

Please keep blogging before the elections - certainly bloggers are Huffington post need to hear intelligent solutions offered on Iraq from the candidates.

Good luck in the primaries.

[dansama]

There are terms that are used about Iraq but never defined:
What is winning in Iraq?
What is stability?
Shiite controlled gov allied with Iran is that stable?
What is broken military?
Divorce rate?
Suicide rate?
Institutionalized rate?
Troops coming home is this ALL troops?
What about bases in Qatar?
What about contractor­s/mercenar­ies?