Veep: Early Pullout Won't be allowed: Warning: Graphic Pic

[Laura PourMeADrink]

http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2007/03/25/83/

Published on Sunday, March 25, 2007 by Agence France Presse
Cheney: Early Iraq Pullout Won’t Be Allowed
US Vice President Dick Cheney has assured political allies that an early withdrawal of US forces from Iraq would not be allowed, despite efforts by Congress to impose a deadline on US combat operations there.

The comments late Saturday followed a historic vote Friday in the House of Representatives, which called for a pullout of US combat troops from Iraq by August 31, 2008 — regardless of whether Iraqi security forces are ready to take over from them.

President George W. Bush has vowed to veto the measure. But the threat has called into question the future of a 124-billion-dollar emergency funding bill, to which it is attached.

Lacking line-item veto power, Bush can reject bills only in their entirety.

In light of this circumstance, the president acknowledged earlier Saturday that if the bill that finances the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan is not passed by April 15, the military “will face significant disruptions.”

Cheney for his part used his appearance before the Republican Jewish Coalition in Manalaplan, Florida, to reassure allies that the current political struggle will not result in a precipitous US withdrawal from Iraq.

“A sudden withdrawal of our coalition would dissipate much of the effort that has gone into fighting the global war on terror, and result in chaos and mounting danger,” the vice president declared. “And for the sake of our own security, we will not stand by and let it happen.”

He did not explain what steps the administration could take if the supplemental bill dies in partisan bickering. But he expressed confidence in the final outcome, stating “We will complete the mission, and we will prevail.”

Quoting extensively from Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, the vice president reiterated his conviction that an US early withdrawal from Iraq would be “a complete validation of the Al-Qaeda strategy.”

And he painted a dire picture of the Muslim world descending into chaos and tyranny, if radical Islamists were allowed to prevail.

More at: http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2007/03/25/83/