The Escalation Didn't Work

The escalation failed to do the one and only thing it was supposed to do. The entire Iraq policy of George W. Bush has failed since the fall of Saddam Hussein's statue in Baghdad. No amount of parsing or spinning can change those simple facts: the escalation is and was the wrong answer.

I chaired a hearing on the GAO Report yesterday, the report that stated that Iraqi civilians overall aren't any safer, that the political benchmarks aren't being met in Iraq, that, in short, none of the rationales for the escalation in Iraq have come to pass. It unfolds with maddening, enraging regularity: the Administration claims goals for their policy, they gradually back off of those goals and substitute smaller, less easily measured goals, and then muddy the waters hopelessly on whether even those modest new goals have been met. Time and again we've been through this.

That's why the Congress set up some clear benchmarks to measure what's happening in Iraq. Mitch McConnell praised the "clarity" those benchmarks brought to the debate. "Just wait until September," they all said. "We put in these meaningful benchmarks, we can judge in September."

Well, how do they judge those benchmarks now? Only three of 18 have been met. Another four were "partially met," which sounds like a "Gentleman's C" if I've ever heard of one (and, for anyone who saw my college transcript, I have).

Judgment time is here, and the only verdict is the same one we had in January, the same one we've had for a long time in Iraq: the Bush policy is a tragic failure. It's a policy that not only isn't working; it can't work. A political solution in Iraq cannot come about without a clear deadline on where our troops will be pulling out. Only Iraqis can end this civil war, and they aren't - and won't be - making any progress with an open-ended, massive presence by our military in their country.

The White House has tried, with some success, to focus everyone's attention in the media on the report they are writing, the report they used to call the Petraeus Report. But, at least judging from press reports, unfortunately, this report already seems to be controversial and solely focused on military measures. (No surprise - now, thanks in large measure to some good old fashioned muckraking out here in the blogosphere, we know that even the so-called Petraeus Report will be written not by the General, not by our Ambassador in Baghdad, but by the White House-- the White House which has again and again avoided the kind of plain, unadorned facts discussed in the GAO report.)

Look, I know from experience that there's no such thing as a military solution to a situation like this, and no amount of "metrics" can create one. Our own generals have always confirmed this about Iraq. And by the way -- go read all of the statements at the time about the "reason" for the escalation - it was to buy political breathing room for Iraqis to compromise. Period. It hasn't happened. So it all boils down to the same thing: these are more "steps" that don't get you any closer to your real goals, "successes" that don't lead to any resolution.

This White House ran out of credibility on Iraq a long long time ago. This is not the first time we've been told one thing only to learn another (Weapons of mass destruction? Greeted as liberators? Saddam's oil revenue to pay for the war and reconstruction?), so, predictably, instead of an honest appraisal of the escalation, this White House is again moving the goalposts and shifting criteria-- and they are doing it as the moment of accountability arrives. Their response to bad news has been and continues to be: simply change the story. What they can't change is the fact that time is not on our side. It's wrong to sacrifice over 100 American lives each month for a policy we know is not working.

So here's where we stand: Republicans asked for clarity in this debate and swore up and down that, this time, they were serious. When September came around, they'd look at the facts and make a sober assessment on the merits of the policy in Iraq. Well, those facts are in. We need to keep up the pressure on them.

I'll be working continuously this month trying to set a deadline to force a new policy in Iraq. I'll try to stop by as often as I can this month with ways you can, if you choose, put the pressure on the Roadblock Republicans to force them to take a new tack. In the end, it's been sustained action by millions of activists that have gotten us this far, and it's only through the loud voices of those activists that we can get what's right - an end to the Bush doctrine in Iraq, and a policy worthy of our soldiers' sacrifice.

Comments

[joebaggadonuts]

JK, if you are reading this, know that you must stop the reauthorization for this war in Iraq. The next appropriations measure which needs to get through the Senate has to be stopped. Cold. It's the least you can do since you lost the presidency. You said you could beat this man. You couldn't. Do something about it now, please.

Thanks.

joeb.

[littleblackcat]

Joe, If we had access to ALL the facts, I think we would all know that Kerry did not losse to bushit. There was so much tampering with of votes that God (however you perceive that entity) would not have lost. The head of Diebold (company that makes those electronic voting machines) declared publicly that he had ONE MAJOR GOAL and that was to ensure that dumbya was returned to office. I suggest that you read many of the opinions in the full Huffington Post if you want a gut-wrenching picture of what bushit has done to this nation.
The entire funding for this war must be terminated and our people brought home as quickly as may be safest. My bumper sticker reads "THERE IS NO FLAG LARGE ENOUGH TO COVER THE SHAME OF INNOCENT BLOOD" I wonder how bushit can sleep at night? I would commit suicide if I had caused the amount of death, maiming, and other horror he has.

[DavidMG]

I don't think the current occupant thought it would. He is just treading water until he can drop his mess in someone else's lap. He is playing the public and media.

[Grannybj]

We don't need another "new policy," we need W I T H D R A W A L!

[esquire07]

There will be no withdrwal. to much money to be made by the Oil companies and Amrs dealers.

[AlteredEgo]

March in DC on Sept 15. Stand up and be counted against the war profiteers. Stand up and be counted for the sake of our troops. Stand up and be counted by our cowards in congress who are running out the clock on Bush administration at the expense of our troops and tax dollars. Tell this congress to reject Bush's upcoming request for $50 billion, tell this congress to require and withhold authorization for pre-emptive war with Iran, and tell this congress to impeach our traitors-in-chiefs.

[scooperss]

not 50 billion 197 billion.

[InFRAUDweTRUST]

Many people have the mistaken impression that this occupation has been mismanaged. It has not. It has been UNmanaged. The Bush administration and its ideology for privatization and deregulation that permeates every sector of government decided that the "free" market would provide the best solution. It is not difficult to judge now how wrong they were.

Anyone who knows the first thing about management knows you need a budget and a schedule. What they chose to do instead was to set the market loose on Iraq.

Now the NEOCONS collectively are in DENIAL that there could be anything wrong with their beliefs. They still think the market will solve everything, it will just take more time.

They couldn't be more wrong. The market will decide, and decide that we do not belong in Iraq.

[cuddletuffy]

nice moniker! funny how free the market is for all the no-bid contracts. don't underestimate the neo-cons. they are not in denial. they are sociopaths. if free market is the term required to obfuscate domestic-c­orporate-s­ocialism crossed with imperial-c­orporate-c­olonialism on foreign sands, that is the term they will use. this is intentional.

as geo-political tacticians and strategists these guys are about as competent as bonaparte was. however, they still got extremely rich off of this imperial caper, completed the transition of the united states into a fascist dictatorship and laid the groundwork for a domestic police state

behind every great fortune there is a great crime. behind their many great fortunes, there are many great crimes. and who did commit the one that served as the, "catastrophic Pearl Harbor-like", catalyzing event that paved the way for the rest of them???

[CheGuevara1]

Where is the War Czar?

[Plowboy]

My dear Senator Kerry,
I know that I am no genius. I would not attempt to tell you how to introduce legislation, but I have been a man for a few years. I know sometghing about that. I am not a rich man, but if I could sacrifice what I have to prevent our nation from any further attrocities, I would gladly do it. I know that if I were a Senator with sufficient wealth to live on very comfortably for the rest of my life, I would surrender my position if that was what it took to stop this evil. Your colleague Senator Joe Lieberman has no qualms about pushing more war. I suppose he feels that serving his cause is more important than anything else. I would serve mine with as much fervor. I would, of course, oppose Mr. Lieberman in every way I could. But I would stop the warmaking if that were at all possible. And if not, I'd go down fighting like hell.
Senator .....

[SeattlePublicMarket]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U623_GTYX-8

Check it out.

[lackeylocal]

Don't give Bush another dime for this WAR~!~!~

[kmdscsd]

Thanks Senator Kerry...go get er' done! Don't stop fighting for truth; MA is proud to have you there in Washington! :)

Tina
Boston, MA

[cuddletuffy]

The truth is that the onus is not on the Republicans. The onus is on every single congress person to do the right thing.

The truth is, at best many of the Democrats and Republicans are afraid. I almost feel like I am watching the first star wars trilogy. The acting is just as bad and wooden, the characters one-dimensional caricatures, and the script is as simple and obvious as it could be. Except in this case, I suspect the Senate knows who the Phantom Menace is. Perhaps that is why they fear so much. Who is profiting?

Sorry to devolve into such blatant nerdism.

Stop funding the war. When you are attacked by the fascists as being cowards you counter with numbers. You show the American public:

1. How much we spend a month
2. Who we borrow from
3. What amount the debt service payments alone amount to and which countries and domestic banks the money goes to.
4. Itemize the number of hospitals, factories, schools, bridges, roads, canals, levees, parks, transit systems we could replace and/or repair with the money.

Do this presentation relentlessly. Every American understands this basic math. We are all, "fiscal conservatives".

If you want to destroy the Republican party, this is what you do. In fact, this would destroy the imperial cesspool that controls both parties.

Checkmate! It is your move Senator.

[altohone]

I object to the way you frame this debate Senator.

You write "The entire Iraq policy of George W. Bush has failed since the fall of Saddam Hussein's statue in Baghdad."

Sorry. Wrong.
The policy failed when you and the the rest of them voted to allow the invasion in the first place.

You failed us when it counted in 2002.
You failed us when you refused to challenge the concept in 2004 too...
...again and again since then on top of it.

Listening to the sour grapes critics that enabled this fiasco is more than I can take... sadly, you are not alone.

The failure was going in, and no amount of back-seat driving can change the fact that you continue to refuse to acknowledge the original error.

Rewrite the post from that point of view if you want to regain my respect.
The right thing to do with poor execution just doesn't cut the mustard in my book.

[argentino]

john kerry would have made a great president...not a good president... a great president!

[rgblue]

You're absolutely correct.

As an earlier poster noted, Kerry was robbed.

The election was effectively stolen from Kerry, and I have a hunch that was fine with some Dems.

[tiggersthotfulspot]

Stop voting money for military operations. And shut the government down if necessary, to end this gigantic war crime.

All else is just talk talk talk...

[scooperss]

Yes and it's gotten to the point that if a congressman opens his mouth against the war, I automatically take it for granted that it's just for show.

VOTES VOTES VOTES

[PatGogerty]

Can you Imagine Abraham Lincoln saying "we must wait for General Mclellan to tell us what to do" the Army of the Potomac would still be waiting. Truman was right McArthur was wrong so Truman fired him. After the Bay of Pigs Kennedy said he would always take what the Joint Chiefs told him with some wariness. They wanted him to invade Cuba in 1962 during the missle crisis but he overrode their advice and averted World War. When measured by these men Bush is pathetic, So Mr. Kerry stand up and do what is right, oppose this President with every tool at your disposal!!!