Why Did Bush DO NOTHING to Reverse Disbanding of Iraqi Military?

James Fallows and I are both still in utter disbelief about what appeared in the New York Times yesterday regarding Bush's comments to biographer Robert Draper that he really didn't know much about why his policy on keeping the Iraqi military intact was reversed.

From the Times report:

Mr. Bush acknowledged one major failing of the early occupation of Iraq when he said of disbanding the Saddam Hussein-era military, "The policy was to keep the army intact; didn't happen."

But when Mr. Draper pointed out that Mr. Bush's former Iraq administrator, L. Paul Bremer III, had gone ahead and forced the army's dissolution and then asked Mr. Bush how he reacted to that, Mr. Bush said, "Yeah, I can't remember, I'm sure I said, 'This is the policy, what happened?'" But, he added, "Again, Hadley's got notes on all of this stuff," referring to Stephen J. Hadley, his national security adviser.

There are several layers that need to be peeled back on this revealing admission from Bush.

First, who made the decision if not Bush? From Charles Ferguson's prize-winning documentary, No End in Sight, we learn that CPA National Security Advisor Walter Slocombe had much to do with the decision.

On May 9, 2003, Walter Slocombe, L. Paul Bremer, Paul Wolfowitz, and Douglas Feith had a meeting discussing Iraq. A question came up: "What about the Iraqi military?" And according to Slocombe, no one said anything -- which was a response in itself. The decision to disband was made by Slocombe and Bremer. My source does not know if the decision went up to Rumsfeld or not -- but it did not go further to anyone else in the administration, including to the National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice, to the Secretary of State Colin Powell, to the Vice President, or to the President.

But then there is another question that just seems to SCREAM OUT.

When Bush & Co. realized that the administration's policy on the keeping the Iraq military intact and all of those soldiers employed had been flipped upside down, why didn't they reverse the decision? Why didn't Bush demand an immediate reversal?

According to former senior CPA Office of Reconstruction Special Initiatives chief Paul Hughes -- who is one of the few good guys in No End in Sight and who responded to a query of mine:

Steve Clemons: Why after the Iraq military had been disbanded -- and it was made clear that this was not consistent with President's Bush's position -- that the military was not immediately reconstituted/reassembled? Is there some technical reason why after a military is officially disbanded that that order could not have been rescinded -- and then the Iraqi military reconstituted?

Paul Hughes: In a nutshell, Bremer was empowered to make the decision and it could have only been rescinded by him. The trick was how to make that happen.

Jay Garner tried to get him to roll it back some and Bremer refused; I suspect it would have taken Rumsfeld to make it happen and we know where he was on the issue.

The president was aware of the plans to use the military but he never had his hand on the throttle. So when the Pentagon leadership decided to abolish the military, it felt no need to inform either the President or the NSA (Rice). He was out of the loop on this decision because his management style enabled others to do end-runs around him.

Another aspect of this issue concerns how you put toothpaste back in the tube. Once the order was announced, there was no turning back because at that moment we stopped being an army of liberators and became an army of occupation. Once the Iraqis saw us in that light there was no way to go back and change that.

Paul Hughes is probably right that when this decision was implemented, it affirmed what many Iraqis and Arab Muslims throughout the region feared: that US forces were not "an army of liberators and became an army of occupation."

But still. . .It is stunning to hear Bush himself admit his surprise that a policy this consequential to the Iraq effort had been reversed by his people -- and that he knew little about it. No curiousity? No fury?

Perhaps the single worst mistake in Bush's presidency despite the decision to invade Iraq in the first place and he tells Draper: "Yeah, I can't remember. . .[to Bremer] This is the policy, what happened? . . .Hadley's got notes on all of this stuff."

Stunning, frustrating, depressing honesty from George W. Bush.

-- Steve Clemons publishes the popular political blog, The Washington Note

Comments

[AlButerol]

Isn't this proof of what we've been saying for years. Bush is an easily controllable dimwit. The government is run by Cheney and others who picked Bush precisely because he is simply a chimp in a suit that has no knowledge, interest, or control of what's going on around him. As long as he gets to ride his bike, take inordinately long vacations, and play war president, he's happy. After all, running the country is "hard work" that is better left to those who can read at a higher than 8th grade level.

[Dansden]

When the DECIDER'S wife feels the freedom to make her condescending comments about him, it is not difficult to see that he is NO LEADER- in his house, in the Congress House nor in the White House- a mere puppet of Poppa BUSH, of wealthy fascist tycoons, of greedy Republican interests and of his own inedumacashun, strung out on his own importance and isolated by his own ineptness! Bush cannot be blamed- it would be like executing an imbecile- just let him play over in the corner of his own world with the 'toys' that laura lets him have....nothing pointy or sharp or shiny....

[realpolitic]

Bush doesn't know heads and tails about his own policy, and is in the dark about some of the most important decisions made during his administration. Paul Hughes said: "The President was aware of the plans to use the military but he never had his hands on the throttle." Bush doesn't even know where the throttle is located in the White House.

Bush made a middling effort in school, in the National Guard he didn't try very hard. His business career was resurrected by his rich friends. Why would we expect anything but a half-hearted effort once in office?

[adzeman]

The essence of this story is worse than the story itself.
In order for Bush to let this monumental blunder pass two things had to occur.
One, he had to be unaware of the consequences and of his own policy.
Two, none of the advisors that he had access to either understood the situation or cared to counsel Bush on the army dissolution.
Most likely the experts had been scorned so often by the neocon cabal, that they didnt bother raising an alarm.

[Robert59]

He didn't because Bremer was right unless you want a military dictatorship that oppressed 80 percent of the people back in charge. And if you wanted a military dictatorship why advance democracy and get all those people to vote?

If you were a Shiite or Kurd would you have supported keeping intact the Iraq military? Not just no, but hell no!

This is more spin and obfuscates the real problem. We didn't invade with enough forces. A half million soldiers and Marines would have allowed us to declare martial law, seal the borders, attack with overwhelming force the paramilitaries, prevent looting, protecting critical nodes, and secure all the stockpiles of weapons that are now killing so many Americans and Iraqis.

The Iraqi Army had to go. No more finger pointing Mr. President; accept responsibility like a man. You are the decider and you decided you didn't need half a million men. You are the one who didn't listen to the commanders on the ground so you hired one (Tommy Franks). You played the role of ventroliquist and he the dummy.

[Dejack]

"Hadley's got notes on all that stuff...."

My God! And we voted for this clod twice, with some still say he's doing the best he can.

Who are the stupid ones?

[timeforachangenow]

so what you are saying is BushCo was asleep at the wheel and THAT is why we have this DISASTER on our hands....interesting concept...

maybe Craig was asleep when he touched feet in the bathroom...

yeah..that's the ticket...

[Townncountry]

Why not ask the 4th branch of government -- the Cheney branch -- to testify? He probably has all of the answers.

[NavyMom]

Don't you all think it's interesting that Bremer is NOT standing still for having this mess blamed on him?

[outnow]

I went to a good prep school. I messed around and got straight A's. Bush's grades really sucked. I scored in the top 1/0th of one percent in Latin on my SATs achievement test but only top 20% in my Law School Admission Tests. (of all college graduates seeking admission to law school). I consider myself high average to superior in intelligence.

Guys like Bush were not able to make it without their Dads. He wouldn't have even gotten into Andover without Daddy. He was born on third base and it was only money that put the Decider into positions where he even makes decisions.

A real "second-rate" man, morally and intellectually. I passed the Bar Exam on the first attempt but Bush could not get into University of Texas Law School because of his low grades and low aptitude.

Why is anyone surprised with his lineage and average aptitude?

[KeysDan]

This reporting should not be a surprise. It always seemed clear to me that George W. Bush was selected by the Republican party to be its front-man-in-chief. A guy with no particular talent, other than secondary school cheerleading and an interest in sports, pushed along in life by family name,social status and wealth. His five-years as Texas Govenor were unremarkable, other than his record number of executions. Being Daddy Bush's son gave an edge in fundraising and assured the Republican party that he would do no harm to their goals. His campaign disguised his right wing ideology, giving indication of the lying yet to come. He seems to have been pursuaded that the presidency would be an easy job and we probably could have muddled along with him if the nation were not so deeply challenged by 9/ll. As with most Ivy League types, he is very competitive, and probably sees Irag as as a partisan game, and he is out to show that he can beat the anti-war dissenters in a way that Nixon could not. The same biographer quotes President Bush as saying, upon seeing former President Clinton at the UN, that six-years from now he (Bush) would never be seen at the UN. He seems to be looking forward to his retirement as much as 75 per cent of the electorate are--he, to resume biking and more relaxation--we, to re-claim our country.

[peterg76]

Because:

Bush did not understand the importance

Bush did not care about the immense human suffering that would result

Bush was too self-absorbed, vain, and cowardly to admit that someone working for him had made a catastrophic mistake

And this is just speculation, but Cheney may have pointed out that stealing the oil would be easier without an Iraqi army, although the Iraqis, in a sort of display of democratic spirit, created their own militias.

[sugarmoes]

i guess duhbooyuh wasn't "the decider" on that day. or "the jet fighter pilot lander on aircraft carrier with codpiece intact" days. maybe that was one of his "the bike rider" days. or... a "the brush clearer" days. could it have been another "the my pet goat reader" days?

[fleetw1978]

No matter if Bush knew or approved the dismantling of the Iraqi army or the Baath Party, it doesn't take a Harvard MBA to figure out that if you "fire" 400,000 soldiers and take thier salaries but let them keep their weapons, something bad is going to happen. DUH, maybe they'll get pissed at us and join the other side? Whoever was making decisions, totally F__d up. PERIOD. Of course nobody in the Bush administration will be held accountable. That is left to the men and women of the US armed services. Bremmer, Wolfy, Rummy, et al........ they get medals and cushey jobs making millions while our young men and women keep dying and getting maimed by the 400,000 former Iraqi soldiers.
Read "FIASCO" and "Imperial life in the Emerald City." Breathtaking FACTS about how this administration ran the war.

[lobear00]

This Guy should have his wife write his book on how to Lie and not get caught.
It makes one wonder 'what color the sky is in that empty head of his.