Thursday, May 3, 2007
Now that the grandstanding round is over in Washington, maybe Congress can get to the business of doing something meaningful about Iraq.
On Tuesday, President Bush vetoed a $124 billion spending bill that would have funded operations in Iraq, but also would have set a timeline for withdrawal of American forces.
It was an anticlimactic moment. For weeks, the Democratic Congress has been working on legislation to force the president to change course on Iraq. For just as long, Bush has vowed to veto such a bill and continue to add troops as part of his "surge."
As written in this space Sunday, it is now time for even those who have supported the Iraq mission -- as these pages have in the past -- to recognize that the chances for military success there are unacceptably low. Not only is the situation in Iraq dire, but the president has squandered support for the war at home. He'll never get the long-term commitment needed to pursue even the thinnest hope for military success in Iraq.
Democrats believe they were handed control of Congress with a mandate to end the war, and perhaps that's true. It's understandable they would first pursue a hard time line for ending the war, even if it had no chance of becoming law.
Having done that, they can now get down to the business of crafting a plan to end our military operation in Iraq that will work politically and militarily.
To that end, Sen. Olympia Snowe has a good idea. She is sponsoring a bill that would set benchmarks for success in Iraq. If they're not met, military commanders would have to come up with plans for limiting our commitment there.
In its current form, Snowe's legislation probably doesn't do enough to force the president to change course to satisfy most Democrats. But bridging these competing concerns is where good leaders can make a difference.
The way out of this quagmire is to get Democrats and Republicans in Congress to agree in principle on winding down operations in Iraq and then to create a workable process for getting there.
A hard timeline may carry too many political and military liabilities, but somewhere between an open-ended commitment and immediate withdrawal is a plan that will bring this nightmare to an end.
In truth, the only benchmark that has the American public's attention right now is the casualty count among American troops. But if setting measurable goals for progress can lead to extricating ourselves from this war, then it's a reasonable course to pursue.
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Legislation in Washington DC is not going to stop war in Iraq. Our military already knows what their goals are and doesn't need legislative "benchmarks" held over them like a report card over a 17 year old who wants to drive the family car. The Man is in control, for God's sake let him do it. If you don't like how it turns out, you get to vote in a year and a half. That's how things work in this country, so quit complaining! report abuse
The "benchmarks" compromise produces the same results, allowing this war to drag on, and it doesn't save any lives or dollars.
Benchmark setting has been ballyhooed about before, and it seems to me Senator Snowe is acting like a geisha girl here, setting up a "save face" for THE MAN.
Is it somewhat peculiar that measures for progress in Iraq are a new thing? have none been set or met so far? Does anyone really believe that this lightbulb of an idea is really about setting
goals? what kind of goals?
I can see it now "Goal 10/10": by 2010 we will have fewer than 10 people dying every day? is that the kind of goal?
Can anyone explain how measuring the goals met will make any difference?
Enough is enough.
How about a benchmark and goal for the IMPEACHMENT proceedings?report abuse
The crap they put in the emergency bill for the troops is nothing less than treason.
Pelosi and Reid often say the American People have spoken, the Will of the American people....I guess they didn't hear me.
We need to finish the job in Iraq, the troops need everything they ask for, Pelosi and Reid should sit down and shut up!report abuse
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