Obama to council: 'No good options left' - Obama unveils plan to cut U.S troops in Iraq
Obama to council: 'No good options left' - Obama unveils plan to cut U.S troops in Iraq
BY SCOTT FORNEK Political Reporter
Copyright by The Chicago Sun Times
November 21, 2006
Declaring that the American public demanded change in the midterm elections two weeks ago, Sen. Barack Obama called Monday for a "gradual and substantial reduction in U.S. forces" in Iraq, beginning in four to six months.
"There have been too many speeches," the South Side Democrat told a crowd of 1,400 at a foreign policy luncheon. "There have been too many excuses. There have been too many flag-draped coffins. There have been too many heartbroken families.
"The time for waiting in Iraq is over. It is time to change our policy."
The potential presidential hopeful spoke at an event sponsored by the Chicago Council on Global Affairs at the Chicago Hilton and Towers, outlining a series of steps he said should be part of that changed policy.
"But it will not be easy. For the fact is that there are no good options left in this war."
Wants talks with Syria, Iran
Obama called for "a phased redeployment of U.S. troops," increasing the number of Special Forces members and other military personnel training Iraqi security forces and tying U.S. economic aid in Iraq to the progress it makes in reaching a political solution to end the sectarian violence.
He also said the U.S. should sit down with Syria, Iran and other nations in the Mideast to involve them in finding a lasting solution to end the war.
President Bush has refused to talk to Iran until it abandons any plans to develop nuclear weapons, and the administration wants Syria to pull out of Lebanon.
Obama said Iran and Syria "are badly mistaken" if they plan to use a destabilized Iraq as "another Afghanistan or a staging area" for terrorist attacks on Israel or others. But he insisted it makes no sense not to engage them in talks.
"Keep in mind that throughout the Cold War -- at a time when we had intercontinental ballistic missiles pointed at every major city of the United States -- there was a phone directly from the White House to the Kremlin," Obama said. "There were constant summit meetings taking place throughout that period."
Obama said redeployment of U.S. forces out of Iraq will send a message, particularly to Iran.
"You may have enjoyed watching our difficulties in Iraq," he said. "You will not enjoy a million refugees pouring over your borders in the event that Iraq collapses."
Obama stopped short of calling for bringing the troops home, instead saying some would be redeployed to northern Iraq, others to other parts of the Mideast and still others to Afghanistan.
Urges economic pressure
Obama did not set an exact timetable but said the phased redeployment should begin in four to six months, although the timing should not be "overly rigid" to give commanders on the ground flexibility to protect the troops or adapt to changing political arrangements in the Iraqi government.
Obama said the key is for the Shiites, Sunnis and Kurds to sit down and forge a lasting peace, and he said a mix of gradually redeploying troops out of Iraq and applying economic pressure is the best way to make that happen.
"No more coddling, no more equivocation," he said.
Many of the ideas he advanced have been proposed by other Democrats and analysts, and Obama conceded "there's going to be overlap" in the proposals being advanced. He said he has had "off-the-record" conversations with members of the bipartisan, congressionally created Iraq Study Group, which will issue a series of recommendations to the White House sometime after Thanksgiving.
Rips 'policy-by-slogan'
"There are a restricted number of options," Obama told reporters after his 36-minute speech. "There is no magic bullet in Iraq, and I think anybody who expects there is one is going to be disappointed."
Obama took more than a few swipes at Bush, saying the results of the midterm elections show that "the American people have sent a clear message ... that policy-by-slogan will no longer pass as an acceptable form of debate in this country.
"'Mission Accomplished,' 'cut and run,' 'stay the course' -- the American people have determined that all these phrases have become meaningless in the face of a conflict that grows more deadly and chaotic with each passing day -- a conflict that has only increased the terrorist threat it was supposed to help contain."
Obama offered no clues on whether he will run for president in 2008 but said he will decide "sometime in the next few months.
"This is a profoundly personal decision that I'm going through right now," he said.
"Obviously, I'm looking at the external factors -- money and organization and, you know, [the] calender and all those things. But the most important thing I'm looking at is, do I have something unique to bring to a presdiential race that would justify putting my family through what I think everybody understands is a grueling process."
During a visit to Indonesia on Monday, Bush told reporters he is awaiting the suggestions of a "variety of sources," including a military study commissioned by Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Peter Pace.
sfornek@suntimes.com
Iraq vet: Heart in right place, but ...
BY MARK J. KONKOL Staff Reporter
While Barack Obama's plan to redeploy U.S. troops out of Iraq scored applause Monday, some soldiers who spent time on the front lines say his good intentions might make for a not-so-good exit strategy.
Obama's "heart is in the right place," said Army Reserve Maj. Dave McGuire, but the battlefield reality is "as soon as insurgents know we're leaving, they're going to rocket the crap out of us."
Obama said President Bush should announce a "gradual and substantial reduction" in troops, determining how many soldiers would be pulled out of Iraq and when.
Obama suggests building alliances with some Middle East nations and implementing "condition-based" aid for Iraqi reconstruction. Troops could be deployed to northern Iraq and Afghanistan to keep a strong U.S. influence in the region to fight terrorism, he said.
"His thoughts were interesting and some of the stuff scores good points, but I don't know if he has grasp of what we in the military call 'operational arts,' " said McGuire, a 17-year Army veteran who spent six months in Iraq back in 2004.
"It's so easy when a policy is not working -- and the administration is actually saying so -- to be the Monday morning quarterback."
'Expand American influence'
Ret. Army Col. Frank Johnson, who served in Iraq in 2004, said a U.S. withdrawal should be event-driven, rather than put on timetable.
"We need to look at how to expand American influence and reduce the American presence," he said. "We need to make sure the rules of law are established in the entire country so [all Iraqi factions] know they will be treated equally in accordance of the law."
Still, Johnson and McGuire say Obama's got the right idea in changing how this war is fought and praised the junior senator for "at least coming up with a plan."
McGuire agreed with Obama's proposal to train and provide strategic support to the Iraqi army and police forces to undercut support for insurgents.
"We're doing conventional operations and this is an unconventional war," Johnson said.
BY SCOTT FORNEK Political Reporter
Copyright by The Chicago Sun Times
November 21, 2006
Declaring that the American public demanded change in the midterm elections two weeks ago, Sen. Barack Obama called Monday for a "gradual and substantial reduction in U.S. forces" in Iraq, beginning in four to six months.
"There have been too many speeches," the South Side Democrat told a crowd of 1,400 at a foreign policy luncheon. "There have been too many excuses. There have been too many flag-draped coffins. There have been too many heartbroken families.
"The time for waiting in Iraq is over. It is time to change our policy."
The potential presidential hopeful spoke at an event sponsored by the Chicago Council on Global Affairs at the Chicago Hilton and Towers, outlining a series of steps he said should be part of that changed policy.
"But it will not be easy. For the fact is that there are no good options left in this war."
Wants talks with Syria, Iran
Obama called for "a phased redeployment of U.S. troops," increasing the number of Special Forces members and other military personnel training Iraqi security forces and tying U.S. economic aid in Iraq to the progress it makes in reaching a political solution to end the sectarian violence.
He also said the U.S. should sit down with Syria, Iran and other nations in the Mideast to involve them in finding a lasting solution to end the war.
President Bush has refused to talk to Iran until it abandons any plans to develop nuclear weapons, and the administration wants Syria to pull out of Lebanon.
Obama said Iran and Syria "are badly mistaken" if they plan to use a destabilized Iraq as "another Afghanistan or a staging area" for terrorist attacks on Israel or others. But he insisted it makes no sense not to engage them in talks.
"Keep in mind that throughout the Cold War -- at a time when we had intercontinental ballistic missiles pointed at every major city of the United States -- there was a phone directly from the White House to the Kremlin," Obama said. "There were constant summit meetings taking place throughout that period."
Obama said redeployment of U.S. forces out of Iraq will send a message, particularly to Iran.
"You may have enjoyed watching our difficulties in Iraq," he said. "You will not enjoy a million refugees pouring over your borders in the event that Iraq collapses."
Obama stopped short of calling for bringing the troops home, instead saying some would be redeployed to northern Iraq, others to other parts of the Mideast and still others to Afghanistan.
Urges economic pressure
Obama did not set an exact timetable but said the phased redeployment should begin in four to six months, although the timing should not be "overly rigid" to give commanders on the ground flexibility to protect the troops or adapt to changing political arrangements in the Iraqi government.
Obama said the key is for the Shiites, Sunnis and Kurds to sit down and forge a lasting peace, and he said a mix of gradually redeploying troops out of Iraq and applying economic pressure is the best way to make that happen.
"No more coddling, no more equivocation," he said.
Many of the ideas he advanced have been proposed by other Democrats and analysts, and Obama conceded "there's going to be overlap" in the proposals being advanced. He said he has had "off-the-record" conversations with members of the bipartisan, congressionally created Iraq Study Group, which will issue a series of recommendations to the White House sometime after Thanksgiving.
Rips 'policy-by-slogan'
"There are a restricted number of options," Obama told reporters after his 36-minute speech. "There is no magic bullet in Iraq, and I think anybody who expects there is one is going to be disappointed."
Obama took more than a few swipes at Bush, saying the results of the midterm elections show that "the American people have sent a clear message ... that policy-by-slogan will no longer pass as an acceptable form of debate in this country.
"'Mission Accomplished,' 'cut and run,' 'stay the course' -- the American people have determined that all these phrases have become meaningless in the face of a conflict that grows more deadly and chaotic with each passing day -- a conflict that has only increased the terrorist threat it was supposed to help contain."
Obama offered no clues on whether he will run for president in 2008 but said he will decide "sometime in the next few months.
"This is a profoundly personal decision that I'm going through right now," he said.
"Obviously, I'm looking at the external factors -- money and organization and, you know, [the] calender and all those things. But the most important thing I'm looking at is, do I have something unique to bring to a presdiential race that would justify putting my family through what I think everybody understands is a grueling process."
During a visit to Indonesia on Monday, Bush told reporters he is awaiting the suggestions of a "variety of sources," including a military study commissioned by Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Peter Pace.
sfornek@suntimes.com
Iraq vet: Heart in right place, but ...
BY MARK J. KONKOL Staff Reporter
While Barack Obama's plan to redeploy U.S. troops out of Iraq scored applause Monday, some soldiers who spent time on the front lines say his good intentions might make for a not-so-good exit strategy.
Obama's "heart is in the right place," said Army Reserve Maj. Dave McGuire, but the battlefield reality is "as soon as insurgents know we're leaving, they're going to rocket the crap out of us."
Obama said President Bush should announce a "gradual and substantial reduction" in troops, determining how many soldiers would be pulled out of Iraq and when.
Obama suggests building alliances with some Middle East nations and implementing "condition-based" aid for Iraqi reconstruction. Troops could be deployed to northern Iraq and Afghanistan to keep a strong U.S. influence in the region to fight terrorism, he said.
"His thoughts were interesting and some of the stuff scores good points, but I don't know if he has grasp of what we in the military call 'operational arts,' " said McGuire, a 17-year Army veteran who spent six months in Iraq back in 2004.
"It's so easy when a policy is not working -- and the administration is actually saying so -- to be the Monday morning quarterback."
'Expand American influence'
Ret. Army Col. Frank Johnson, who served in Iraq in 2004, said a U.S. withdrawal should be event-driven, rather than put on timetable.
"We need to look at how to expand American influence and reduce the American presence," he said. "We need to make sure the rules of law are established in the entire country so [all Iraqi factions] know they will be treated equally in accordance of the law."
Still, Johnson and McGuire say Obama's got the right idea in changing how this war is fought and praised the junior senator for "at least coming up with a plan."
McGuire agreed with Obama's proposal to train and provide strategic support to the Iraqi army and police forces to undercut support for insurgents.
"We're doing conventional operations and this is an unconventional war," Johnson said.
posted by Carlos T Mock @ 8:13 AM
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