Senator Obama: Mission Illogical?
By Joel Arends
July 14, 2008
What's the deal, Senator Obama? For 915 days now, you have avoided Iraq like the plague and have refused to meet one-on-one with General Petraeus. You've continued to ignore the truth about Iraq - violence is down, the Iraqi military is taking control, political progress is accelerating - in favor of spreading false gloom and doom. With all the good news coming from Iraq, where's this so-called "change we can believe in?" It's becoming clear that facts on the ground, the strategy adopted by our top-level commanders, and the desire of our troops to complete their mission all undermine the whole purpose of your candidacy.
When the president announced his plans for the surge in his 2007 State of the Union address, you scoffed: "I am not persuaded that 20,000 additional troops in Iraq is going to solve the sectarian violence there. In fact, I think it will do the reverse." (web site) A year ago this week, only one month into the surge, you made this bold and completely erroneous statement: "Here's what we know. The surge has not worked." (web site) Last November on "Meet the Press," you said, (web site) "not only have we not seen improvements, but we're actually worsening, potentially, a situation there," and stated: "I would end this war, and I would have the troops out within 16 months." On March 19, 2008, in Fayetteville, North Carolina, you stated that upon becoming President you would "immediately begin to remove our troops." (web site) Today, everyone knows the surge has worked -- even John Murtha and Hillary Clinton have admitted it. You consistently claim to have the judgment to lead our great nation, Senator Obama; now it's time to use that judgment and acknowledge reality.
Your senior political advisers are desperately trying to rewrite history when it comes to your position on the surge. How can your communications director, Robert Gibbs, and senior strategist, David Axelrod, look the American people in the eyes and say you've never disputed that the surge would work? You say you will "respond directly and forcefully with the truth." We're all waiting for the truth, Senator. We've been waiting for quite a while.
The 25,000 members of Vets for Freedom offer this message of hope and change for you, Senator Obama: Not only are things changing for the better in Iraq, but the surge has succeeded, and for the first time in decades, the Iraqi people have hope. Yet, the only thing you want to change is the current winning strategy, by insisting on a rigid and illogical timetable for retreat.
In an interview with Martha Raddatz of ABC News, Maj. Gen. Jeffery Hammond, commanding general of the 4th Infantry Division, gave his unvarnished opinion regarding timetables for withdrawal from the battlefield. When asked how he would feel about an order to start drawing down two combat brigades a month, Hammond said: "We still have a ways to go. Number one, we're working on security and it's very encouraging, that's true, but what we're really trying to achieve here is sustainable security on Iraqi terms. So, I think my first response to that would be let's look at the conditions. (web site)
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