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Wednesday, July 9, 2008

Iraq Calls For Withdrawal Timetable - McCain Demurs

As many of us already know, Iraq Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has called for a timetable for withdrawing U.S. troops from Iraq. The sentiments were later echoed in full by Iraqi national security adviser Mowaffak al-Rubaie.

What's McCain's position?

In 2004, McCain said that we should absolutely leave Iraq if the Iraqis asked us to leave.

I think it's obvious that we would have to leave because -- if it was an elected government of Iraq, and we've been asked to leave other places in the world. If it were an extremist government then I think we would have other challenges, but I don't see how we could stay when our whole emphasis and policy has been based on turning the Iraqi government over to the Iraqi people.

Pretty clear right?

Nope. McCain has responded by basically calling Al-Maliki a liar:
"Since we are succeeding" in Iraq, he said, "then I am convinced, as I have said before, we can withdraw and withdraw with honor, not according to a set timetable. And I'm confident that is what Prime Minister Maliki is talking about, since he has told me that for the many meetings we have had."

So, John McCain and George Bush, what are we to do? You got your wish and installed a democratically-elected government that is now telling you to leave in no uncertain terms.

Well, no surprise here, the Bush administration has given the sovereign democratically-elected government of Iraq the finger and said "no dice":
The U.S. government rejected calls by Iraq to set a timetable for withdrawing troops from the country and said the planned reduction in force levels will be dictated by conditions on the ground. "We want to withdraw, we will withdraw," State Department spokesman Gonzalo Gallegos told reporters in Washington yesterday. "However, that decision will be conditions-based."

Lord, save me from this insanity.

To freshen your day after dealing with all the daily McCain insanity, here's Chris Mathews laying into a spokesman for a pro-McCain "independent" group on the issue of timetables for withdrawal:

Posted by Metavirus at 7/09/2008 12:54:00 PM  

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