Thursday, December 01, 2005

Here's the Straight Dope


Click on this video. This is Representative John Murtha (D, PA) speaking after the President's big speech on 'how we're going to win in Iraq' this week. Its really worth watching. Murtha notes that Bush claims Iraq has 100,000 security forces ready for work. this is part of the "as they stand up, we'll stand down" mantra. The problem is that over 6 months ago, when the President spoke to the nation, he claimed that there were over 200,000 security forces.

The larger point is that much of the discussion we hear is not reality based. There is a big difference between Murtha's position and so many others that saying we should pull out of Iraq. Murtha was for the war. Now he's not, but the reason given is that if this administration refuses to conduct a war in a way that is: 1. honest with itself & 2. capable of success, then we have no reason to be there. This, is perhaps the ultimate stinging critique. you have a man, a soldier, that is FOR your war, but turned against it because he has utterly no faith in the administration's ability to run the war. THAT is about as bad as you can get in national security...When a hawk that ALSO wanted your war now seeks withdrawal because he thinks you are incapable of doing the job.

That is where we are at the end of 2005.

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