Campaign Promises on Ending the War in Iraq Now Muted by Reality

[DeepModem Mom]

NYT: News Analysis
Campaign Promises on Ending the War in Iraq Now Muted by Reality
By THOM SHANKER
Published: December 3, 2008

WASHINGTON — On the campaign trail, Senator Barack Obama offered a pledge that electrified and motivated his liberal base, vowing to “end the war” in Iraq. But as he moves closer to the White House, President-elect Obama is making clearer than ever that tens of thousands of American troops will be left behind in Iraq, even if he can make good on his campaign promise to pull all combat forces out within 16 months.

“I said that I would remove our combat troops from Iraq in 16 months, with the understanding that it might be necessary — likely to be necessary — to maintain a residual force to provide potential training, logistical support, to protect our civilians in Iraq,” Mr. Obama said this week as he introduced his national security team.

Publicly at least, Mr. Obama has not set a firm number for that “residual force,” a phrase certain to become central to the debate on the way ahead in Iraq, though one of his national security advisers, Richard Danzig, said during the campaign that it could amount to 30,000 to 55,000 troops. Nor has Mr. Obama laid out any timetable beyond 16 months for troop drawdowns, or suggested when he believes a time might come for a declaration that the war is over.

In the meantime, military planners are drawing up tentative schedules aimed at meeting both Mr. Obama’s goal for withdrawing combat troops, with a target of May 2010, and the Dec. 31, 2011, date for sending the rest of American troops home that is spelled out in the new agreement between the United States and the Iraqi government.

That status-of-forces agreement remains subject to change, by mutual agreement, and Army planners acknowledge privately that they are examining projections that could see the number of Americans hovering between 30,000 and 50,000 — and some say as high as 70,000 — for a substantial time even beyond 2011.

As American combat forces decline in numbers and more provinces are turned over to Iraqi control, these military planners say, Iraqi security forces will remain reliant on significant numbers of Americans for training, supplies, logistics, intelligence and transportation for a long time to come....

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/04/us/politics/04military.html

[dflprincess]

1. Does Iraq get a say in this? (eom)

[EFerrari]

2. I saw in the MSNBC crawl this morning that Obama had called the Iraqis

to re-assure them that he was committed to a timely withdrawal. That doesn't exactly answer your question but I'm glad Obama is actively developing that relationship already.

[Lasher]

3. Iraqis want the soldiers out but they want the money to keep flowing from the US.

My guess is that they won't object to the presence of a token US force if that's what it takes to keep the gravy train going.

[dflprincess]

5. 30,000 - 70,000 sounds like more than a token (eom)

[Lasher]

6. Not if they are essentially confined to their bases.

If combat troops are out within 16 months from January 20, Obama will have kept his promise. But it looks like we're going to continue hemorrhaging money there for a long time after that.

[walldude]

10. The gravy train?

We reduced their country to rubble for no reason. No threat, no WMD's. I'd hardly call what the Iraqi's are doing riding the gravy train.

[Lasher]

12. Some Iraqis have benefitted greatly from the influx of US dollars.

To them, yes, it's a gravy train. As is always the case, to most people who live there, not so much. Regardless, it is clear that their leaders (the ones making the decisions) want the US money to keep on rolling in.

[Winterblues]

4. Well one thing is he has been very consistant on this issue

He has stated over and over that he would have to leave several thousand troops in Iraq but that he would end all Combat operations and remove the very great majority.. He said this time and time again during the Primaries..From what I can tell he is still saying exactly the same thing.

[zorahopkins]

7. OUT! NO*!

I hope that President Obama uses his po*er to get every single American troop out of Iraq -- NO*!!

There is NO REASON for ANY American Troop to be in Iraq -- it *as a *ar based on a lie, and *aged solely for OIL.

Get those troops -- every single one of them -- home, and DO IT NO*!

Note: In protest of the continuing occupation of OUR *hite House by the illegal and totally corrupt Bush/Cheney regime of thugs and cronies, I REFUSE to use the letter bet*een "V" and "X".

[DeepModem Mom]

8. *hat a great protest, zora! nt

[zorahopkins]

9. I Hope Others *ill Follow

Thanks, DeepModem Mom!

I hope others *ill join me in this very visible protest of the *ORST pResident in our history!

Note: In protest of the continuing occupation of OUR *hite House by the illegal and totally corrupt Bush/Cheney regime of thugs and cronies, I REFUSE to use the letter bet*een "V" and "X".

[Lasher]

13. Great rant!

I *ant every single soldier out too! And *e need to cut every nickel of Iraq funding off so that *e can use the money for something useful like universal health care in the US.

But like Chris Rock says, Junior is not just the *orst president in our history, he is the *orst president of anything!

[Sub Atomic]

11. I thought Karl Rove and William Kristol were saying the war was over the other day.

What happened?

:crazy: