Bush: No Iraq pullout without victory

[Sean]

http://www.cnn.com/2005/POLITICS/11/...raq/index.html

The White House held out the prospect Tuesday that U.S. troop levels in Iraq could be reduced soon, but President Bush insisted he would not withdraw U.S. forces "without having achieved victory." Bush is scheduled to make a Wednesday address that will launch a new series of speeches aimed at bolstering public support for the increasingly unpopular conflict. On Tuesday, during a visit to the U.S.-Mexican border, he said any decisions he makes will be based on the recommendations of top U.S. commanders. "If they tell me we need more troops, we'll provide more troops," he said. "If they tell me we've got a sufficient level of troops, that'll be the level of troops. "If they tell me that the Iraqis are ready to take more and more responsibility and that we'll be able to bring some Americans home, I will do that." But he said he would not let the U.S. troops killed in Iraq "die in vain" by withdrawing before a stable, democratic Iraq emerges. "That's what's important for the American people to understand -- that, one, we are not going to cut and run; two, we'll achieve our objective; and three, the president is going to listen to those who are on the ground who can make the best assessment," Bush said. About 159,000 American troops are in Iraq, up from about 138,000 in the summer, as the country prepares for its third round of voting this year. Iraqis are set to select a permanent National Assembly December 15, after choosing a transitional parliament in January and approving a constitution in October. The Pentagon has said that the level of troops is likely to go back down to the summer's level after the election. The United States invaded Iraq in March 2003 on the contention that former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein was trying to obtain nuclear weapons and had concealed chemical and biological weapons stockpiles from U.N. weapons inspectors. No such weapons were found once Hussein was toppled, and American troops have been battling a persistent insurgency since his government collapsed in April 2003. The Bush administration now says U.S. troops must help stabilize Iraq's fledgling government and prevent the country from becoming a haven for Islamic militants linked to the al Qaeda terrorist network. The U.S. death toll reached 2,110 Tuesday when a roadside bomb killed two U.S. soldiers north of Baghdad, and support for the conflict has dropped sharply in recent

[PatrickHenry]

I thought "Mission Accomplished" was a victory.
If the troops were to have been pulled out then, how many people would still be alive that are now food for worms? Don't fall for his "nice guy" mask and his earnest demeanor. He's a mass killer with an occult blood ritual past. Skull and Bones is a good way to depict Dubya.

[tinybear]

Yeah, there are many ways of defining 'victory'. :rolleyes:

[Zealot]

Quote by: PatrickHenry I thought "Mission Accomplished" was a victory. If the troops were to have been pulled out then, how many people would still be alive that are now food for worms? Don't fall for his "nice guy" mask and his earnest demeanor. He's a mass killer with an occult blood ritual past. Skull and Bones is a good way to depict Dubya.

Yes, he is on the road to victory that few cowards dare to tread.
We almost fell for the "nice guy" who flaunted his purple hearts.
There are many, who have long been devoured by the worms, that would scream from their graves if we turned and ran again. "We have yet begun to fight" still reverberates in the hearts of real Americans, God Bless em!

God bless America and our leaders.

[Zealot]

Quote by: Sean http://www.cnn.com/2005/POLITICS/11/...raq/index.html

And listen to the defiant, defeated dictator that was dragged form a hole in the ground, scream at his trial like a WMD with a wagging tongue.

[oranged]

I think that for The Bush administration victory is Iraq officially becoming US territory, like Guantanimo Bay, and Puerto Rico.

[Sean]

You guys are missing the key part of this article. He is talking tough but also in the article there is a hint that some troops are coming home due to political pressure.

[Rainbow]

Quote by: Sean He is talking tough but also in the article there is a hint that some troops are coming home due to political pressure.

That is exactly what G. Bush meant.
Political decisions will be crucial, while there is not much of space and/or room for mistakes and/or manouvers. Now, we would have a chance to see how G. Bush is politically skilled and/or powerful.

I am not quite certain on Shiites.
I think some of them would try to out-manouver some pro-democratic developements (already into effect) for pro-Islamic ones. Let us see that, along with outcomes.

[Boetie]

The real reason Bush Jr wishes to keep this murder spree going is because the cost of it is not added into the deficit. If by any chance Republicans should loose power in two branches of government after Bush Jr leaves, the new guards will be handed the bill.

This bill will ensure the Republicans that there is no money for the needy, elderly and helpless. This is the victory Bush Jr is talking about. Also they are trying to make permanent certain welfare programs for the top ten percent of the wealthiest people in our country.

Mission Accomplish is when there is ecomonic insecurity for the people of the United State and when there is job insecurity for the people of the United States. And when this country starts looking like Haiti, Mission is Accomplished.

[RickSp]

Once again, before a carefully selected and controlled audience, Bush pounded his chest and said nothing really new.

All indications are that the Pentagon is planning significant troop cuts in 2006, which cannot be without White House approval. So as they plan troops cuts and they themselves work on a timetable, Bush must stand up, bluster and claim exactly the opposite. We must have victory, regardless of of hollow and meaningless that "victory" will ultimately be defined to be.

2110 as of this morning.

[Sonart]

Quote by: Zealot And listen to the defiant, defeated dictator that was dragged form a hole in the ground, scream at his trial like a WMD with a wagging tongue.

Yessiree... and it only cost us 2,100 American dead and 15,000 maimed or wounded -- and still counting -- $200 billion, a busted budget, a broken military and our international leadership and respect.

But by golly, Saddam is on trial.

Interesting, though... we got Slobodan Milosovic out of office and on trial for almost nothing.

Quote by: Sean You guys are missing the key part of this article. He is talking tough but also in the article there is a hint that some troops are coming home due to political pressure.

Actually, I thought it was a reasonable speech. Considering all the ways Bush has botched this from day one, this strikes me as the only reasonable approach. It makes me think maybe he stopped listening to Cheney and Rumsnamara. :rolleyes:

Quote by: Rainbow I am not quite certain on Shiites. I think some of them would try to out-manouver some pro-democratic developements (already into effect) for pro-Islamic ones. Let us see that, along with outcomes.

I'm almost POSITIVE many of them will. With Iran pitching in and helping out right behind them. I think they foresee the Iranian Islamic Republic of Iraq in a few years, and there's not much we can do to stop it.

.

[Strange Alchemy]

Quote by: tinybear Yeah, there are many ways of defining 'victory'. :rolleyes:

Bush Dictionary:

victory (vik' tree)--Rice 2008.

[Rainbow]

Quote by: Sonart I'm almost POSITIVE many of them will. With Iran pitching in and helping out right behind them. I think they foresee the Iranian Islamic Republic of Iraq in a few years, and there's not much we can do to stop it.

That what CIA is for and all about, as a counter-measurement body.
I expect to see some unusual events that will surface Iraqi political and administrative scene.

[RickSp]

Quote by: Sonart With Iran pitching in and helping out right behind them. I think they foresee the Iranian Islamic Republic of Iraq in a few years, and there's not much we can do to stop it. .

I wouldn't overlook either Iraqi nationalism or the traditional distrust between Arabs and Persians. Even on matters of religions most Iraqi Sh'ites are traditional Twelvers and are not necessarily comfortable with Iranian Khomeini style radicalism.

[SteveA]

Bush is the Commander in Chief, he doesn't have any direct say in funding or troop levels or even whether or not a war exists in the first place. Congress decides funding for military resources. The most the President can do is veto the funding, so Bush has little say in how many troops are under his direction, if Congress disagrees.

[SteveA]

Quote by: Rive about damn time somone understood the process of war and the military, i've heard enough of this "the president declared war" bull thank you steve

Wow, my pleasure. Thank you too.

[bishop]

i'm not sure how "breaking" this bit of news is, since it is nothing that we haven't already heard before from bush.

[pubmanager]

Can't believe nobody has mentioned Vietnam.

Doesn't it all sound frighteningly similar?

War on terror - war on red russia

A war with very little public support from the people of the invaded or the invading country.

Spiraling casualties.

Eventually the President pulled the troops out of Vietnam, too late and after too many young lives had paid for ideologies of their respective commander(s)-in-chief.

History repeating or has the USA learned lessons from its short history in international affairs?

[RickSp]

Echoes of Vietnam

[ericsp23]

I have a feeling that a few weeks prior to the 2006 mid-term elections Bush is going to announce a major reduction in American forces in Iraq and provide a the timetable for a full withdrawal that the country is demanding. His polling numbers will take a sudden upswing, and the Republicans will not lose much, if any, ground in Congress.
They used the war to help the Republicans in 2002 and I have no doubt they will do so again in 2006 if they see the opportunity.