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On the day President Bush visited Charleston Air Force Base, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) further laid out his case in support of the troop surge in Iraq via a guest column in Tuesday’s Greenville News.
No matter the reasons we went to Iraq and regardless of mistakes made along the way, I passionately believe Iraq is part of a global struggle affecting our national security. Iraq is the central battlefront in the War on Terror and we must prevail.
President Bush understands these facts and is committed to a successful outcome. I know he looks forward to sharing that message today at Charleston Air Force Base with our brave men and women in uniform.
I visited Iraq for the seventh time over the Fourth of July holiday. On previous visits, I saw the security environment steadily decrease and sectarian violence increase. Our old strategy was defensive and relied on staying behind compound walls while we focused on training Iraqis. It didn’t work.
We now have a new general, new strategy and additional combat power on the ground to carry out a counteroffensive. Our new plan provides a much more visible round-the-clock presence on the streets and cities of Iraq as American troops live and work with their Iraqi counterparts. There is no doubt in my mind, or in the mind of our military leaders, the new strategy is working. The morale of our troops is high. They are gaining momentum and as a nation we must continue to push ahead.
For the first time in months, we have al-Qaida in Iraq on the run. The surge has allowed us to capitalize on mistakes made by our enemy. Al-Qaida overplayed their hand by engaging in incredible acts of brutality and barbarism against Iraqis living under their control. In turn, Iraqis are breaking free and joining forces with us.
Oh yeah, we’re winning this thing now, aren’t we, Lindsey? We’ve got al-Qaida on the run! In a couple of more years, and a couple of thousand more dead U.S. troops and a few thousand more crippled, we’ll wipe out al-Qaida in Iraq. And we’ll also pacify the Shia and Sunni militias, rebuild Iraq, bring the blessings of democracy to the Middle East, bring gas prices down, have a budget surplus again, finish building the biggest and most expensive embassy in the world, and glory in the fact that the Arab world and everybody else finally loves and admires us for our efforts. After all, God’s on our side, isn’t he?
Geez. Sorry for the above post. I’m not much good at satire. Let me tell it straight:
Lindsey Graham does not support our troops in Iraq. He and Jim DeMint support President Bush’s war policies, and not one of them gives a damn about what the majority of the American people wants. Graham and DeMint helped defeat the Webb Amendment, which was totally in support of the troops and their families, and they helped defeat Levin-Reed, blocking any and all progress toward getting the administration to change course in Iraq. This war is destroying America. It is killing and maiming our troops, breaking our military, corrupting our intelligence, bankrupting our country, multiplying terrorists, and turning the whole world against us. It’s time for Republicans to begin thinking for themselves, freeing themselves from blind support of this disastrous administration, and time to begin electing representatives who give some indication that they might turn out to be statesmen, not just political hacks. SUPPORT OUR TROOPS. BRING ‘EM HOME.