Dear Mr. President,
As a rule, I don’t give advice to political opponents, but faced as we are with a natural disaster in Louisiana and a political disaster in Iraq, I’m spotting a light at the end of the tunnel here that could save your hide and satisfy people like me – who want the death in Iraq to end, even if it gives you a political boost.
For once, the politically expedient thing to do is also the right and honorable thing to do. As a politician, I’m sure you’re aware that the convergence of those two particular outcomes rolls around about as often as Haley’s Comet, so I suggest you seize this opportunity.
Here’s what you do: Bring the troops and their equipment home. ASAP. Tell the world how you were really, really digging this democracy building thing, it was a great and glorious gig, but after listening to FEMA Coordinating Director Bill Lokey today, you realized that your first duty is to the American people – and helping one of its most charmed and magic cities recover from a devastating tragedy. Those troops could be used here, for a long, long while. Here’s what your FEMA director said, in case you don’t have a link:
Lokey said he anticipated FEMA will set up a permanent office in the area.
Recovery will take so long, he said, that some workers could spend their entire career working on Katrina.
“This is the most significant natural disaster to hit the United States,” Lokey said.
See, it’s going to be a huge, long haul recovery, a career lifetime … way longer, in fact, than you told the American people that it would take to turn Iraq into a democracy. This way, it’s an act of God that forced you to return your attention to your nation (where it should have been all along, but we won’t argue that one now). You won’t be cutting and running – you’ll be repairing your nation’s shores.
Your supporters will believe you; they swallow any line you feed them. The rest of the world won’t believe you, but they’ll pretend to, just to get rid of our presence in Iraq. Liberals won’t believe you, and will probably say so, but they’ll be so relieved at seeing an end to our occupation, it will sound like nothing but murmurs and whispers to your presidential ears (particularly if you continue to only address hand-picked, adoring audiences).
So do the right thing – for your place in history, your current plummet in the polls and for the general goodwill of humanity. Who knows? The Iraqis may even strew our retreating path with the candy and flowers they were promised all along.
Do we really want to save his ass for him? lol Love the diary!
I’m willing to save his ass if it saves thousands of lives. As I think it would.
I agree 100% with you Susan.
so it won’t happen. Sadly.
It it indeed the perfect excuse to bring the troops back home.
We can only hope your plan works.
Hey! There’s oil in Louisiana! Quick, call the troops! Gotta protectses our oilses!
This is a fairly brilliant suggestion. Too bad DimSon won’t see your radiance.
While I see the sentiment and can feel the pain for your fellow citizens; I have to disagree with this plan for a couple of important reasons.
The Iraqi people are suffering too. Their lives are no less important than those in New Orleans. Sorry, but its true & even though that is not an overt part of your piece, it is an undertone and it’s one of the reasons people get so damn pissed off at Americans. The US brought death and destruction to dozens of cities who are now in worse shape than NO is/ will be. Fallujah for one… sorry it’s not as charmed or magical… but it is in pretty fucking bad shape. Who is supposed to rebuild with the National Guard brought back to the US? The Military does not do nation building… they do war. The National Guard are the only troops in Iraq who are trained in rebuilding and disaster relief along with the Army Corps of Engineers.
While I agree that the Military should be ousted from Iraq asap, the US has a serious obligation to Iraqi’s to stay and help the UN rebuild what they destroyed. And for that you need the National Guard and the Army Corps of Engineers… either that or the missionary contractors stay in Iraq. The UN won’t go in if there is absolutely no protection for their workers either. A real plan for disengagement is needed that incorporates the reality of the situation. My guess would be if the US formed Green Zones around hospitals and schools in various neighbourhoods as they rebuilt vs. the oil fields things might be a tad different… another discussion of course.
So no. I would not pretend to believe Bush just to get rid of your presence in Iraq. I would condemn America’s selfishness loudly and mourn for the Iraqi’s left behind… and my guess is the Muslim world would see the same thing… Hurricane hits the US ~ important. The Cradle of Civilization destroyed ~ who cares, bring the rebuilders home.
What has happened in NO is tragic and I mourn for the victims, but if you as a country are going to exit from Iraq you need to do it right and with forethought and a plan. Not just pulling out and leaving the disaster you brought behind you because things got bad on your own shores.
I don’t mean to imply that you feel these things yourself of course, I was just illustrating my point.
Up until a few months ago, I would have agreed that “cutting and running” was the wrong thing to do because it would leave the Iraqis at the mercy of a civil war.
But I’ve now come to the conclusion that our presence is absolutely toxic there. We are simply adding to the underlying tensions and divisions, and Iraqis who come in contact with us and with our troops are often signing their own death warrants.
So if I felt there was any bit of good we could still do there, I could agree with you that my suggestion could be viewed as an American-centered, damn the rest of the world argument.
But since I firmly believe it would benefit the Iraqis if we left, AND our troops could be better used here, it seems to me a win-win situation.
Of course, all this relies on the premise that our presence in Iraq is deadly and unhelpful, a view that you don’t seem to share. There’s room for debate on that (although probably not in this diary, but as subject of a different one).
that the American presence in Iraq is deadly and destructive. I have said so since well before the war. But I am also convinced that the US “peacekeepers” need to stay in the country and bring in the UN and the rest of the re-building teams. I think the majority of the actual army, navy and airforce need to leave, but not the emergency response troops (aka the national guard & corps of engineers) and peacekeepers to provide protection for the NGO’s etc.
I am not in favour of the US leaving completely at this point because of the reasons I outlined above. It’s abrogating a most serious moral obligation imo. The US needs to ask for help from the UN and other countries predicated on the “war-makers” (i.e. the majority of the military forces) going home and leaving those who can truly help the Iraqi’s behind.
And in terms of the hurricane and the devestation in the South, Bush is completely to blame for the lack of NG at home & that is reprehensible… but that is a done deal at this point. What he can do now to help those people is marshall the forces left from around the country and ask Canada & Mexico to send help.
I’m trying to be pragmatic (and probably too optimistic about what will be done in Iraq) about priorities and obligations and options to help both the victims in the South and the Iraqi’s. I refuse to see it as an either or, in or out situation.. too much blood has been shed to continue to repeat the same mistakes. Vietnam was not rebuilt after the devestation and after the US troops left and I can’t abide the same thing happening to Iraq.
is that Bush will withdraw troops to secure oil facilities in Kurdish north and Shiite south, and abandon the Sunni central area. That might free up enough troops to bring a photo-opportunity before the elections.