Article by David Espo, Associated Press
Continuing the trend of pulling away from their same-party President, Republicans in the US Congress today spoke out against President Bush's new plan to increase the troop level in Iraq by 21,500 troops. Doubt is continuing to mount for this President as he prepares to deliver his 7th State of the Union Address Tuesday night from Washington. The U.S. has lost 3,000 troops in Iraq since 2003, despite overthrowing the Hussein regime early in the campaign. Last weekend was particulary bloody in and around Baghdad, as 27 troops were killed in a two-day period. Sen. Susan Collins said, "We've had four other surges since we first went to Iraq. None of the them produced a long-lasting change in the situation on the ground." The Republicans, while still indicating faith in Bush, have suggested the Administration create "strategic benchmarks" for the sputtering Iraqi government in the fight against sectarian violence in the middle-eastern country.
This news rings very similar to what the Democrats had to say after the election, when they won back both the House and the Senate. However, I don't this effort by Republicans is going to make a direct impact on Bush's plans for Iraq, as none of the Republicans listed have a great impact on Congress. Sure, Bush is starting to feel the heat, but this "Mission Accomplished" Iraq situation is getting worse day by day. I feel that more troops could be helpful, but only for a short period, and only used in effective hot spots in the country. Otherwise, we need to work much harder with the Iraqi government to start building itself and letting go of it's American crutch, because this situation has reached a dire state on whether democracy in the Middle East can actually survive.
Monday, January 22, 2007
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
1 comment:
Without question the legacy of this President will be defined by his bumbling of the situation in Iraq. However, don’t forget that many years ago another George Bush had Saddam in his sights. Against the advice of his top military brass, he pulled out. Mission unaccomplished and the precedent in Iraq was set. While we spend BILLIONS of dollars and at the cost of thousands of American lives, Iraq appears to be unwilling to participate in their own “freedom.” Do you blame them? We continue to send our troops to fight their fight. The current administration has embarrassed the entire country. And now, the rats are jumping ship. Too late for the Republican Party as the damage has been done. I wish this were just a bad dream and I will wake up and find that the money spent on the war was really spent on health care and education..........for Americans in America. I’m a proud American and I support the troops fighting this war. But, it is time for them to come home.
Post a Comment