DNC: It's Been 90 Days and Counting: Escalation Plan Still Not Working

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WASHINGTON, April 24 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- President Bush once
again today defended his failed Iraq policies. When President Bush first
announced his war escalation plan, his Republican allies in Congress were
quick to embrace the President's permanent commitment to a failed strategy,
saying that Americans should give his plan a few months before determining
whether or not it was working. In fact, House Republican Leader John
Boehner said it would be "clear in the next 60 to 90 days as to whether
this plan is going to work." Yesterday marked the end of the
90-day period. Does House Republican Leader Boehner believe the escalation
plan was successful?

Recent events indicate that the escalation is not working and that a
new direction is needed. Over the weekend, a suicide car bombing killed
nine U.S. paratroopers and wounded 20 "in the worst attack on American
ground forces in Iraq in more than a year." Twenty
Iraqis were also killed in car bombings in Baghdad, and in Northern Iraq,
23 members of an ancient religious sect were shot and killed after their
bus was stopped and passengers were separated based on religious faith.
A new report by the National Security Network, entitled "The
President's Escalation Plan - A Quarterly Report Card," argues that three
months into the escalation, things are getting worse not better in Iraq.

The report notes that since the President's escalation plan was announced,
American troop fatalities are up 33 percent, overall Iraqi casualties rose
10% between February and March and little to no progress has been made on
the Administration's own political benchmarks.
<http://www.nsnetwork.org/node/137>

"It is clear that President Bush's Iraq policies, including his
decision to escalate the war, are not working as promised," said Democratic
National Committee Press Secretary Stacie Paxton. "Democrats have put a
plan on the table that ensures our troops have the resources to complete
their mission but the mission itself must change. It's time for President
Bush to work with Democrats toward a solution in Iraq."

Boehner on January 23: It Will Be Clear "In The Next 60 To 90 Days"
Whether Bush's Escalation Of Iraq War Is Working.

Q: How long can you and your membership give the Iraqi military before
you say, you know what? You're not doing your job.

BOEHNER: I think it will be rather clear in the next 60 to 90 days as
to whether this plan is going to work. And, again, that's why we need to
have close oversight, so that we just don't look up 60 or 90 days from now
and realize that - that this plan is not working. We need to know, as we -
as we're - we move through these benchmarks, that the Iraqis are doing what
they have to do.


http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=ind_focus.story&STORY=/www/story/04-24-2007/0004572819&EDATE=TUE+Apr+24+2007,+03:22+PM
http://www.democrats.org.

[MadBadger]

1. Didnt you know? The surge is still in its early phases

And it will remain that way for the next 2 years so that the Bush admin can keep saying, "Give the surge a chance"

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2. kick

:kick:

[Toots]

3. We need to know, as we move through these benchmarks

Okay how are these "benchmarks" doing? We need to know if any "benchmarks" are being met at all, and what exactly the "benchmarks" are...