I'm not talking about Obama's increasingly probable election, I"m talking about a unilateral American withdrawal from Iraq in the next four months...you just might get it.
More below the fold.
Iraq at gun point?
by Bharath [Subscribe]
Wed Oct 22, 2008 at 05:47:41 AM PDT
Who is holding the gun on the current status of forces agreement? Reading this latest article from the TPM it feels like US is wanting an agreement that lets US armed forced stay until 2011, despite opposition from Iraqi political leaders. The rationale offered is until this agreement gets passed we would stop doing anything.
It's been years There are some here who barely remember when George W. Bush wasn't president. On the other hand, everyone here, both young and old, remembers the anti-war protests vividly. "OUT NOW!!!!" was the cry...or even earlier: "DON"T GET IN!" Some have good memories, some don't. It's all personal, and truth be told, it doesn't really matter anymore. What matters is that a large percentage of those here and other parts of the blogosphere have been working very hard for an immediate and unconditional withdrawal from Iraq.
Well, folk, this is actually it. The Secretary of Defense has just announced that unless we get a new agreement to stay, he will "stop doing anything." In other words: an immediate and unconditional withdrawal from Iraq.
Now the question is not, "will this ploy work?" "It's "should it?" Should Prime Minister Malaki, President Jalal Talabani and all the other politicians with power, get together in the face of this threat and say. "Okay, go ahead, by the way, you can stay in the embassy."
Calling the bluff is the biggest opportunity of the entire war. South Korea's people demanded we leave back in '03 and Rumsfeld replied with "Okay." This caused everyone in South Korea, especially the new President, to poop in their pants and beg us to stay. If the Iraqi government and people REALLY want us to leave, then this is the opportunity they've been waiting for. They should drop out of negotiations. Just call up and say they're not going to show. Simple as that.
This will leave the Bush administration and the McCain campaign in an incredible quandry. If the Iraqis decide to run out the clock, what the heck should they do? Can we stay regardless? Should we really dismantle everything and head over to Afghanistan and finish the job there? Should we just bring the troops home and get ready for the wingnut rebellion here at home?
This particular question hasn't received anywhere nearly the attention it deserves.