Okay, you made me President and now you expect me to do something about the Middle East and get our troops home. But you don’t expect me to do miracles. You know I have to operate within the laws of physics, as well as within the parameters of what is politically possible. You also expect me to adhere to common standards of decency and international law. I can’t just drop a couple nuclear bombs and see if it creates an attitude adjustment.
Well…my options are limited. I can’t increase our troop levels. That just isn’t poltically possible. I can’t side with the Sunni because that would be feeding an insurgency against the democratic government we helped set up. I can’t throw all our weight behind the Shi’a because all our allies in the region are Sunni, and they won’t accept a policy that results in the extermination of their religious brethren. If I pull out all our troops, that extermination will go forth with terrific fury. What the hell am I supposed to do?
I’m sad to say that there is not much I can do. Here are some ideas.
1) If I can’t increase or maintain our troop levels, I can’t protect the Sunni in Iraq using our military. I am going to have to use the State Department, the United Nations, NGO’s, and other governmental organizations. I will allocate a few billion dollars to create a resettlement fund for Iraqi citizens. I will ask Prime Minister Maliki to set up a government agency that will give fair assessments for Iraqis property and offer to buy up the non-mobile assets of Iraqis that feel the need to resettle. I will work with Turkey, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and (possibly) Syria to help fund temporary housing and other assistance for Iraqis that are re-locating. I’ll also create a domestic program for Iraqis that require amnesty. I will also set aside a fund for possible repatriotian of Iraqis if conditions ever warrant it.
2) I will attempt to bring together all the regional players in a peace conference, where the focus will be on ending the civil war within Iraq.
3) I will be prepared to make concessions to Iran and Syria and to insist on concessions from Israel as part of an effort to stabilize Iraq and jump start the Middle East peace process.
4) I will enlist Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton to spearhead an effort to revive the Middle East peace process.
That’s the starting point. I will also approach China, Russia, and France to see whether they can be enticed, possibly through oil contracts, into giving us support in an effort to stabilize the region.
The prospects are not very good. But those are the cards I was dealt.
What are your ideas?
