Leaving Iraq? --Ron Paul's Weekly Update for Oct 31st, 2011

[ubaru]

Leaving Iraq?

It is not too often I am pleased by the foreign policy announcements from this administration, but last week's announcement that the war in Iraq was in its final stage and all the troops may be home for Christmas did sound promising. I have long said that we should simply declare victory and come home. It should not have taken us nearly a decade to do so, and it was supposed to be a priority for the new administration. Instead, it will be one of the last things done before the critical re-election campaign gets into full swing. Better late than never, but, examining the fine print, is there really much here to get excited about? Are all of our men and women really coming home, and is Iraq now to regain its sovereignty? And in this time of economic crisis, are we going to stop hemorrhaging money in Iraq? Sadly, it doesn't look that way.

First and foremost, any form of withdrawal that is happening is not simply because the administration realized it was the right thing to do. This is not the fulfillment of a campaign promise, or because suddenly the training of their police and military is complete and Iraq is now safe and secure, but because of disagreements with the new government over a Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA). The current agreement was set up by the previous administration to expire at the end of 2011. Apparently the Iraqis refused to allow continued immunity from prosecution for our forces for any crimes our soldiers might commit on Iraqi soil. Can you imagine having foreign soldiers here, with immunity from our laws and Constitution, with access to your neighborhood?

Some 39,000 American troops will supposedly be headed home by the end of the year. However, the US embassy in Iraq, which is the largest and most expensive in the world, is not being abandoned. Upwards of 17,000 military personnel and private security contractors will remain in Iraq to guard diplomatic personnel, continue training Iraqi forces, maintain "situational awareness" and other functions. This is still a significant American footprint in the country. And considering that a private security contractor costs the US taxpayer about three times as much as a soldier, we're not going to see any real cost savings. Sadly, these contractors are covered under diplomatic immunity, meaning the Iraqi people will not get the accountability that they were hoping for.

While I applaud the spirit of this announcement - since all our troops should come home from overseas - I have strong reservations about any actual improvements in the situation in Iraq, since plans are already being made to increase the number of troops in surrounding regions. What we really need is a new foreign policy and there is no indication that that is what we have gotten. On the contrary, the administration fully intends to keep troops in Iraq, indefinitely, under a new agreement, while the Iraqis are doing their best to assert their sovereignty and kick us out. Neither are we going to be saving any significant amount of money. My greatest fear, however, is that this troop withdrawal from Iraq will simply pave the way for more endless, wasteful, needless wars.


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[zenekar]

Leaving Iraq?

It is not too often I am pleased by the foreign policy announcements from this administration, but last week's announcement that the war in Iraq was in its final stage and all the troops may be home for Christmas did sound promising....

I agree 100% with this statement but don't get your hopes up, the Paul family still wants to whittle away at social programs, regulations of corporations, would not support single-payer universal health coverage, and they are on the wrong side of the issue regarding a woman's right to choose. No matter what he says, Ron Paul could not and would not do anything about the huge US "Embassy" in Baghdad. Politicians are experts at making promises they won't keep.

[ubaru]

I agree 100% with this statement but don't get your hopes up, the Paul family still wants to whittle away at social programs, regulations of corporations, would not support single-payer universal health coverage, and they are on the wrong side of the issue regarding a woman's right to choose. No matter what he says, Ron Paul could not and would not do anything about the huge US "Embassy" in Baghdad. Politicians are experts at making promises they won't keep.

Nice to hear you agree 100% with Ron's assessment of the United States leaving Iraq. However, Ron Paul is no regular politician. In fact he stands out so much from "regular" politician behavior, it is astounding. He won't even accept a salary! People who are familiar with him would agree that Paul holds a standard a head and shoulders above what we've come to expect for integrity from Washington. He is a man of his word.

I heard him recently being asked exactly how he would be able to bring our troops home, given a split congress, and he explained it clearly in terms of using his powers as president. If I run into it again, I'll post it for you.

You may be surprised how well Ron Paul is doing:

Ron Paul Wins NFRA Des Moines Straw Poll, with 82%

30 Oct 2011

GOP presidential candidate U.S. Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) ran away with the National Federation of Republican Assemblies Straw Poll on Saturday in Des Moines, garnering 82 percent of the vote among Iowans.

Businessman Herman Cain came in second with 14 percent. Former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum, former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich, U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann and Texas Gov. Rick Perry each got 1 percent or less. Former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney received no votes.
Read more at the The Iowa Independent.

Now, how is it that the supposed front runner, Mitt Romney, suddenly received 0 votes? Me thinks it has to do with the reality of what's happening in grassroots America vs. the artificial reporting of lamestreet media to suppress the biggest threat to their power scheme in many a decade.

My number one reason for voting for Ron is he is the only presidential candidate not beholden to corporate interests and the extremely dangerous trend of centralized (global) power. Hence, he is the only presidential candidate that can turn back the tide of ever growing fascism. I may not agree with him on everything, but against fascism, nothing else matters. Stopping the United States from it's endless wars and global empire building, thereby freeing up trillions for economic reform, phasing out the Fed, and restoring our personal liberties are BIG bonuses. That's an understatement.

I encourage anyone who feels the same to seriously consider temporarily registering Republican, so that you can vote this man into office. I'm seeing polls that if he wins the Republican primary he will win over Obomba in a landslide. If he does not win the Republican primary, we can expect total and complete fascism for generations to come.

Liz

"I can think of no greater priority today than a serious and effective antifascist alliance." ~Llewellyn H. Rockwell Jr.





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