The Republicans lost Iraq.
The party in power, Republicans hold every branch of government. Starting with the yesterday's planning and continuing with today's insurgency, President Bush and his administration have gone beyond miscalculation. They've lost. The war, for all intents and purposes, is over and the Republicans lost. Not the Democrats. Not America. The Republicans.
I spend a lot of time here taking shots at President Bush - and rightly so - for his waging an unjust war built on lies made on purpose and with a purpose. What would I do, however? How would I construct an exit strategy, a progressive answer to our regressive foreign policy? Here's a start*:
Get out of Iraq - the right way
The key - as Sen. Russ Feingold has said in recent weeks - is setting a date and following through with our departure. Call a cease-fire if you'd like. But set a date; tell the Iraqis that the responsibility of developing as a nation will soon fall on their shoulders, giving them more self-determination. What's more, think of the terrible toll this war has taken at home. We've lost nearly 2,000 Americans with countless soldiers returning home with serious physical or mental disabilities. Families have been torn apart. Businesses have been hurt. Our homeland has been left unsafe, unguarded. Let's get our young men and women home and focus on building a better, stronger America.
Handing it over
Before we leave, we must do everything we can to ensure that the transition will go well. We make a mistake by saying "get out" and nothing more. While a justified sentiment, its sounds a lot like the simplistic, black-and-white rhetoric we hear from the right. It's more than that. We need to really train Iraqi forces, not just keep talking about it. Why did we disband the Iraqi army when we could have used the majority of them to protect their homeland? Sure, we would have to purge them of pro-Saddam Hussein soldiers, but we would still be left with a strong force, one that we could upgrade with some new insurgency training.
An end to occupation
As far as our presence goes, that's just it: The problem is our presence. A multinational force would still be better than just us. Our presence alone guarantees a continued insurgency. We need to transition from our presence to that of a multinational force charged with peacekeeping and helping the Iraqis get back on their feet. Will others help? It's time we ask, because an unsafe region is just as dangerous to other nations as it is to us. But end the U.S.-led occupation.
Supporting a better tomorrow
Getting out and training Iraqis to take control alone won't cut it; we've got a moral obligation to help. It's time we take President Bush at his word about a Democratic and stable Iraq. Of course, he was lying through his teeth when he said that, but let's act like he wasn't. I'm not saying let's toe the line like Republicans; I'm saying we screwed things up there, it would be completely immoral for us to just leave and give Iraq the "peace out." Iraqis lack the basic necessities they need to survive. We need to force the president to stick to his flimsy word and help put Iraq back on its feet. If we want to talk about moral values so much as Americans, let's be moral and help them out. And, after we leave, we must provide them economic aid, erase debts and help with humanitarian support.
A smarter, stronger America
In the void left open by the lack of a strong, progressive voice, President Bush and the Republicans have seized power using fear, tough rhetoric and jingoistic appeals. For our opposition to the war in Iraq and to the president's hollow attempts at homeland security, we've been branded as soft on terror and pro-retreat. We know, of course, that that's not the case - no Democrat wants terrorists to attack the United States and no Democrat is afraid to commit our troops overseas as a last resort. But we've got to do a better job filling this vacuum with sound, progressive ideas.
The Bush administration's cavalier attitude has won support, but it has also left the world more vulnerable. The attacks around the world have taught us that Bush's flypaper approach is at once foolhardy and a failure. Terrorism - especially the threat of attacks in America - remains a very real threat, one that must be met with a better policy. True homeland security has to be far more than tough talk, bag checks and armed vigilantism.
Since Bush has been president, we've done nothing but throw our weight around the world. Everyone thinks of us as bullies. But it doesn't have to be like that. Instead of using our military might as a club, we should be trying to use everything at our disposal - our economy, our diplomacy, our military - as a force of growth and peace throughout the world. It's time we lead with our heart.
From the '60s to today
If you look around, you're seeing the germination of a renewed anti-war movement. Parents like Cindy Sheehan are voicing their concerns. Thousands around America rallied recently in support of Sheehan and our soldiers. Congressmen like Feingold and Republican Sen. Chuck Hagel - who compared Iraq to Vietnam - are sounding the drumbeat. Paul Hackett nearly took office in a Republican-dominated district for his anti-war views. Sure, more and more people are dissatisfied with the war in Iraq. But we've got to move beyond that. This is neither a single-issue fight nor a numbers game.
Think of everything the war in Iraq has affected: Our economy. Gas prices. Global security. Homeland security. Our society's civility. This is such a far-reaching, Republican-caused disaster that it's rather hard to get our heads wrapped around its impact. That's what we've got to do for the Americans to whom this is just night after night of violence on television: We've got to convince them that it's not just hurting us there, but it's hurting us here, too. We've been presented with a transformative opportunity, one that we must take advantage of if we are to regain power, improve our short-term outlook and foster long-term prosperity.
Getting out of Iraq must be our priority. Doing it the right way is imperative. Bush and the Republicans got us there, they lost and there's no changing that fact. Relying on sound thinking and progressive action, there can be an end in sight - one that every American can be proud of.
* For more in-depth reading about a progressive foreign policy (and one of the inspirations behind this piece), read this wonderful, convincing article by Lakshmi Chaudhry. For another expert opinion on why we have to get out of Iraq, read this article from Larry Johnson.