A Farewell to Iraq

President Obama's policy speech at Camp Lejeune today -

It was a bravura performance.

It would be strange if I had not liked this speech.  The policies involved are ones that I have advocated for years.

In straightforward, statesmanlike, dare I say soldierly, fashion, he laid it all out:

- Major combat forces out of Iraq in 2010.

- ALL forces out of Iraq by the end of 2011 (no bases)

- A regional approach to serious diplomacy

- Outreach to Iran and Syria

- A reasoned study of what the US should do about Afghanistan and Pakistan. (not completed yet)

- Congratulation to the armed forces for duty faithfully and successfully performed.

His words could not have been clearer, and the 2011 date was completely unequivocal.  After that date it is up to the Iraqis.

No sooner had President Obama stopped speaking than the geeks and freaks assembled by MSNBC began to tell us that the plain sense of his words did not mean anything at all.

Before the president spoke, the same crew claimed that "the generals" would insist on a renegotiation (repudiation) of the recent US/Iraqi agreement on withdrawal.  This was and is patent nonsense.  The Iraqis played hardball with the United States last year over this agreement and got pretty much all they wanted.  What possible reason could they have now for agreeing to "renegotiate" anything with us?  They understandably want us out of THEIR country.  There are still many here who can not believe that we have not acquired Iraq as a neocolonial possession, a "jewel in the crown of empire."  Many of the media people are either challenged with regard to "the vision thing" or unable to deal with the idea of a selfless effort.  Perhaps they should have made careers in finance.

The marines understood Obama.  They did not applaud when he entered the room.  They stood, of course, but they did not applaud.  By the time he was finished they were with him 100%.  Barry McCaffery (the sane man among the G&F crowd) said that Obama had spoken perfectly to a military audience, especially to combat people.  I understand that.  For such as they, things do "go bump in the night."  McCaffery also said that his eyes filled with tears at several points.  McCaffery is a hard man.

Mine too, general, mine too.  pl

Comments

[pbrownlee]

Good to see grownups back in charge -- and the Augean Stables need quite a scrubbing.

Now who will defenestrate the fools, flacks and fantasists of the mainstream media?

[Homer]

PL: There are still many here who can not believe that we have not acquired Iraq as a neocolonial possession, a "jewel in the crown of empire."

Mind boggling!!!

Thanks to efforts of many of those disbelievers, Iraq is largely now a burgeoning fundamentalist Islamic republic which has long and intimate ties to extremists in Iran.

It is sickening and saddening that the Iraq we now see is the inadvertent but direct result of Bush's response to the horrific attacks of 9/11.

Strange, is it not, how towers of the WTC went down in flames and the pillars of Islamic extremism arose in Iraq and throughout the ME.

You did a heckuva job Bushies!!!

[Jon T.]

Was there recently a Congressional committee hearing or some discovery somewhere that former and even present Military Officer Corps members were brought to the Cheney/Rove training center, as it were, to be given a perspective to present in their work for major TV news efforts?

I have not read "A Canticle for Leibowitz". The Wikipedia entry surely is inviting and challenging though.

I did read the President's Camp Lejeune speech. I cried. I feel that happened because Mr. Obama gets it: about the families, the children, the dreams in the night, the wounds that won't heal, the buddies that either are gone or aren't right. His talk was not patronizing, it was not a schemed photo op. It was sitting at the kitchen table saying thank you, we have hard work remaining, I know you and we can get it done and we are behind you, totally. Anyone who did not hear that, imo, was not listening.

[Green Zone Cafe]

IMO it would take something like a siege of our embassy by insurgents to delay the 2011 date. pl

I loved the speech too, especially Obama's direct words to the Iraq people. I hope the Arabic translation of those words is widely distributed in Iraq.

I was also a bit shocked by the 2011 date and the lack of wiggle room left in the phrase "And under the Status of Forces Agreement with the Iraqi government, I intend to remove all U.S. troops from Iraq by the end of 2011."

First, does this mean that the 2011 date could change based on a change in the SOFA?

Second, the NEC (New Embassy Compound, as it is called) is about a kilometer long as you drive down Al Kindi street. Lots of buildings with hardening and rocket screens including a PX, gym, warehouses and housing. It's like a college campus in Tucson or a minimum security prison. There are two FOBs in the vicinity of the NEC - which is why there will be no siege, at least until the troops leave. Isn't that the dilemma? And if we have FOBs near the embassy to protect it (perhaps a USMC brigade as the largest Marine Security Guard detachment in the world?), won't we need at least another to secure the airhead at Baghdad Airport? And then maybe a base for close air support?

"All US troops?"

[Andy]

Green Zone Cafe,

The SOFA is quite clear - it's all US troops. However, as Sec. Gates said this morning on meet the press, any change to that would come in the form of a new agreement, one initiated by the Iraqi government.

Personally, I believe that such an agreement is likely to provide for a small number of trainers, continued air support while until Iraq's Air Force becomes self-sufficient, and probably intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance assistance. Much of that (securing Iraqi airspace, providing air support) could be done from airfields in Kuwait and elsewhere. Again though, as it stands now, that is something the government of Iraq will have to ask for under terms that would be negotiated in the future.

[Cold War Zoomie]

Let the short time calender commence.

A bit early for the short-timer calendar...no such thing as a triple digit midget! If my memory serves me right, 90 days out is the official start.

Of course, AF "peeps" tend to go FIGMO as soon as we can get away with it.

[Patrick Lang]

doug

I screwed up. I thought I was responding to Ed's question about Huntington's monastery. sorry. pl

[Linda]

Even though Iraq is given back their sovereignty there are security companies such as SIC Iraq that may continue to stay there. I wrote an article about SIC and the man behind the scenes.
http://www.socyberty.com/Organizations/The-Man-Behind-SIC-Iraq.751571