It's Time to Make a Choice in Iraq

Yesterday, twelve former Army captains wrote that short of reinstating the draft, "our best option is to leave Iraq immediately." In an extraordinary editorial in the Washington Post, these captains--all of whom served in Iraq--made it clear that we need to end this war and we need to end it now. They wrote that a " scaled withdrawal will not prevent a civil war and it will spend more blood and treasure on a losing proposition."

I strongly urge every American to read this important report from those who served in the failed conflict in Iraq. Army captains are the staff officers who plan operations against insurgent strongholds. They are the company commanders who lead our soldiers through the streets of Baghdad. And they are the soldiers who will direct our withdrawal from Iraq.

These men and women know the score. They know that we must leave Iraq. As they put it, "It's time to make a choice." Americans are fed up with the President's stalling and Congressional failure to act. Frankly, it is well past time we make a choice. And the only responsible choice left to us is to get all of our troops out of Iraq, with no residual forces left behind--no combat forces, no non-combat forces. As President, I will do it. I will get all of our troops out within a year after I take office - sooner if we can get it done safely.

The other major candidates in this race have said--again and again--that they will not. Senators Edwards, Obama, and Clinton have all refused to commit to getting all of our troops out of Iraq by 2013. None of them are willing to be clear about removing all troops - combat and non-combat. It's unbelievable. Are they looking at the same war the rest of us are? Furthermore, they are all advocating precisely the sort of scaled withdrawal that these twelve captains are warning against. It doesn't make any sense. Real leadership is about making the tough choices, and knowing when it is time to make bold moves. Now is the time for action, not hesitation. Ending this war requires real change, not more incrementalism.

Ending this war is the most important issue of our time. And it is the fundamental difference between me and Senators Edwards, Obama, and Clinton. I will end the war; they will not. I will get all of our troops out; they will leave troops behind indefinitely. I will order a safe and rapid withdrawal and have our troops out within a year. They have proposed a long, protracted withdrawal that will only increase the danger to our fighting men and women and drag out the war.

2013 is six years from now - six years. In six years, will we have lost 6,000 men and women in Iraq? 10,000? More? In six years will this be a $2 trillion mistake? Or $3 trillion? The war has been going on for four and half years already. Six years from now, we will have been there for more than a decade. Are you okay with that? I'm not.

The choice in Iraq is clear. We need to get all our troops out quickly. We need to end this war for real. Go to getourtroopsout.com to join Americans across the country in calling for a quick, clear, responsible end to the war in Iraq.

Comments

[frank67]

Bill Richardson is right. Time to bring our troops home from Iraq NOW!

[PashaM]

Yes because if they are out of Iraq we can send them in to Iran that much quicker.

[mburton]

You say you want to "end the war" by pulling out quickly. What you really mean is that you no longer want the U.S. to be in the middle of the mess we created. You are fine with the war persisting--indeed, intensifying--as long as we don't have to hear about it on the news every night.

This is a pretty selfish, narrow-minded view of the world, don't you think?

[dshwa]

I don't think that's true at all. Once we leave it will be up to the Iraqi people to decide their own fate. If they choose violence and conflict, that is there choice. You are opperating under the belief that we can clean up the mess we made. It is obvious that we cannot.

[MGSupporter]

Congratulations Governor Richardson for coming over to Mike Gravel's position to get us out of Iraq now, a little late but better than never.

[Lazslo]

Richardson has had this policy for a good while now, and has not wavered from it. While I appreciate many of Mr. Gravel's thoughts on issues, he is not a good communicator and as such he would be an ineffective leader. Please consider supporting Bill Richardson in his run for the presidency.

[Lazslo]

Do people realize that this is the ONLY presidential candidate who will end the Iraq war? If the country is so against the war, then Richardson should be leading in the polls by a huge margin.

[mburton]

Again, I want to re-emphasize how simplistic and narrow-minded this is. Richardson's policy is to simply withdraw from Iraq, nothing more. Such an action is completely independent from ending the war. Withdrawing from Iraq would do no such thing. The US military is a third party in a civil war. While withdrawing would take the burden off of us, the war would go on. So please stop saying that Bill Richardson will end the war.

[Lazslo]

I will not stop saying it - and you are mis-stating Richardson's proposed policy. The genius of Richardson's policy is this: use the fact that we are leaving immediately as a negotiating chip with the rest of the region. If we leave, that will create a vaccuum in the region and everyone has an opportunity to participate in maintaining the peace, or have it go to hell, whatever they want. I'm paraphrasing his policy, obviously, but that's the essence. What makes this credible is the fact that he is an accomplished negotiator who has produced results. Surely this makes sense to you. In addition, he has a proposal for energy independence which must be part of any proposal to leave Iraq. Please take a look at what Richardson is proposing.

[Misanthrope2]

Edwards has also committed to withdrawing all troops except to protect an embassy and aid workers.

It isn't fair to lump him with Obama and Clinton, who envision tens of thousands of troops for years to come.

[Tom Gerosolina]

When I was a boy I asked my Uncle Frank can you teach me how to swim. He said Ok; they he picked me up and threw me off the boat and I had to sink or swim. I swam. We have to do the same thing in Iraq. Get out know and let them sink or swim; I am confident they will swim.

[madcindy]

We have to get out of this so called war and fast--no one mentions the fact that this war is helping fuel our Global Warming Meltdown!!!!A report released today informs us that 23% of the Polar Ice Cap has melted in the last TWO years. Seems to me that all the extra carbon footprints we are leaving in the Mid-East may be feeding this unexpected acceleration of melting.
Gov. Richardson is the only declared candidate who has the experience to lead us out of the mess we allowed Bush and Co. to get us into--at home and abroad.
I have two bumper stickers-- Richardson for President on the left and DraftGore.com on the right.

[Lazslo]

madcindy: how can we get people to pay attention to what Richardson is saying? Democrats say they are for ending the war, but if that were true then Richardson would be the frontrunner in the presidential dem primaries. Richardson is the ONLY candidate who will end the war and get troops out of Iraq, and the only person who has the political skills to make it happen, as you said. Why isn't he the frontrunner? I'm racking my brain over how to get his message out more effectively. Any ideas?

[rjcrane]

What we aren't hearing is how many troops will be needed in Iraq indefinitely if just to guard, provision and maintain that huge embassy and a couple thousand people bunkered down in it? Just getting these people food requires armored convoys into Baghdad. How many troops will be stationed on our many large and permanent military bases in Iraq just to maintain those? What is going to happen to those bases? How many troops will be needed to guard the oil fields and oil terminals and pipelines? And how many private contractors assuming military functions will remain there? Are we just going to be subbing mercenaries for US military?

I have heard others including Richardson refer to as many as 75,000 troops remaining in Iraq if either Hillary or Obama or Edwards become President and believe this number means something. I figure we might need as many as 10,000 personnel in Iraq just to adequately service our embassy there.

We all need to find out exactly what these candidates mean by withdrawal from Iraq and attempt to pin them down on who will remain, how many will remain and what functions they will have. So far I have not heard any good or realistic answers.

RJ Crane, editor
topplebush.com

[Lazslo]

Exactly. It will take many, many troops to guard an embassy. There is no need to have an embassy in Iraq. After demolishing their country, do you think people want a US embassy in their country? Again, the ONLY candidate that will end the war in Iraq is Richardson. A vote for anyone else is a vote for the Iraq War. Let's just see who really wants to end the war.

[rroy]

I am puzzled as to why phrazes like, "end the war"and "victory"are constantly thrown at the American public!
Though politicians and pundits persist in saying the "Iraq Occupation"is not like Vietnam,it has many unavoidable similarities:!
First of all we are fighting against counter insurgents who's identity we are mostly uncertain of.
We are not fighting on an identifiable front against a uniformed identifiable enemy for an identifiable strategic objectives.

We are in a land we attacked preemptively for reasons that turned out not to be true.

In truth,we are someplace we have no reason to be in and are now stuck on a way to get out.

How do we define victory?Is victory when every citizen of Iraq,and possibly Iran meekly bows to the will of the occupier?In reality and recognition of recent and earlier history,does this situation actualy seem feasable?

What war?We actually won the war a long time ago!What has it gotten us?We are worse off strategicly and world wide public attitude than we were in 2002.
We are not at war!we are occupiers!And the time has long passed to get the hell out!!!

Maybe I'm stretching my imagination a bit but there are also similarities to Napoleon's occupation of Moscow!The longer we stay the more difficult it is to get out.

[WaterRat]

The major reason behind Bush's refusal to consider troop withdrawal, is simply because of America's big business interests in the region.
Without troops, forget Black Water, the businesses will become prime targets for all Iraqis.
We've been through a whole routine of excuses: WMDs, Hussein, Insurgents, implanting democracy, Al Qaeda, Civil War.
When, right from the start, there was nothing, absolutely nothing, that justified an invasion of Iraq.
Bush and Cheney will make the Iraq War a parting gift on 1-20-09 to the next president and the American people.
Unless someone with determination with a no frills goal says it's over, we will inherit Bush's war without end.

[Pdubya]

What Democrat wouldn't want this? !!!

Call your representatives and get this supported!

http://www.thomas.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c110:H.R.3835:

[Kirby]

Not only will we all inherit the continuation of this Iraq mess, a war without end, amen, but inherited, as well, will be a debacle of vast import of destruction to the United States and Israel, all because this idiot is tied to the strings, formerly being pulled by Sharon, but now being pulled by Olmert and his AIPAC, chief organizational stooge of the AJC and Israel in concert.
Let us pray to God that the American people will get wise and see how we are being manipulated, and that we will put an end to this madness.

[thedirtman]

Governor, the choice is quite clear. Leadership means the having the ability to make a commitment and keeping to it. Leadership is not setting some goals and hoping that the enemy will not distract us from our goals.

Leadership also requires having the resume and the experience to bring about success. We need to get from Point A to Point B. We can't get there with hope, and we can't get there by setting conditions. We get there by making it our priority. None of the so-called top tier - the media darlings have the experience of the second tier candidates. It simply is not enough that candidates have charisma. This is leadership by stupefaction.

Democrats have shown the same willfulness to fall for media darlings that the Republicans did in 2000 - when they chose the one that looked like Daddy in a red tie. Naively, they failed to look at the experience, the ability, and the positions of their candidate. They simply looked at the image and concluded "this guy will win". Democrats are doing much the same.

The Republicans did go one step worse. They used petrifaction - that is, the use of fear to persuade voters that they were unsafe under a Democrat.

There will be a day when people will no longer accept petrifaction and stupefaction in their candidates. These are weapons that campaigns use against the American voter in the War on Intelligent Thought. It is high time we asked politicians to put down their weapons and begin to draw on wisdom and experience for leadership.

[Herders4Me]

>> Ending this war is the most important issue of our time.

[WaterRat]

You're right!
Governor Richardson is right!
Tell Hillary, Barack, Joe, et al., they're so far out in left field they ought to pack it in and let Bill Richardson show them, he's a candidate who stands behind what he says.
Get out. Get out NOW!
This war is strangling this nation, and it isn't doing any good for Iraq and its people.
No wonder the GOP is jumping ship.

[gardenbookie]

Yes, it is as simple as that. Lay down arms and walk away. Take a train, a boat, a plane and get the hell out. Would this be an act of desertion? An act of treason? No. It's common sense. Something our executive leaders know nothing about.
We (the People) have been sitting out here on our thumbs, watching this administration dig a bigger and bigger hole for us to fall into. It's time....na­y, past time....fo­r the PEOPLE to do the right thing.

[TheLar]

Thanks, Guvnah! Get the troops out NOW. All of them. Yes, it's that simple.

[chrisrushlau]

I told my Senator's aide here in Maine as soon as I got back from Iraq in Jan. 2005 (that's Senator Collins), "The sooner, the better."
It's not just good for us who will stop killing and dying, and stop spending money on a crime. Withdrawal will also let Iraqis get down to political business. Withdrawal will also let the region get a second wind and think about their political future. It will take a long time for them to lose the fear of our crazy interventions. The time to start building confidence is now.

[WaterRat]

I salute you, and welcome you back to Maine.
Unfortunately, I do not believe Senator Collins is listening to our cries to end this mess.
Perhaps she and the others who continue to support this president and his war, won't permit common sense to filter into their understanding of what this mess is all about.
Their ears are deaf to the pleas for a sane decision to pull-out NOW!
How can anyone in Washington, D.C. earning more than $100,000 a year, secure for life with medical benefits, and pension, possibly know what it is like to face the reality of death every day?

[Lazslo]

I'm from Maine, transplanted to Washington State. Good luck getting new representation in the next election. I think Maine will go democratic this time. Collins and Snowe are very vulnerable. Best regards, Lazslo.