Senators (Warner & Levin): Iraq situation bleak (U.S. losing Baghdad)

[sabra]

http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/story.php?f=1-292925-2155617.php

Senators: Iraq situation bleak

Members of the Senate Armed Services Committee offered bleak assessments Thursday of the situation in Iraq and of chances of any near-term withdrawal of U.S. forces.

Sen. John Warner, R-Va., the armed services committee chairman, said Iraq “is imply drifting sideways” because the new government has been unable to exercise the reins of power or find a way to disarm the secular militias that are endangering lives.

Warner flatly declared that the U.S. is “losing the Baghdad campaign” as the number of casualties rises.

“War grinds on and we taking distressing tolls of life and limb every day,” he said.

Warner said something big needs to happen to jump start the government so it regains some hope after last year’s elections. He suggested another vote on a referendum for the Iraqi people about whether and how long they want U.S. troops to remain.

[habitual]

1. Mission Accomplished n/t

[Botany]

2. Why do they hate America?

Senators Warner & Levin damn liberals


Time to load up the neo cons & college repugs and send them to Iraq.

[MannyGoldstein]

28. Only A Pessimist Would See It As 97/100ths Empty!

Some things in life are bad
They can really make you mad
Other things just make you swear and curse.
When you're chewing on life's gristle
Don't grumble, give a whistle
And this'll help things turn out for the best...

And...always look on the bright side of life...
Always look on the light side of life...

If life seems jolly rotten
There's something you've forgotten
And that's to laugh and smile and dance and sing.
When you're feeling in the dumps
Don't be silly chumps
Just purse your lips and whistle - that's the thing.

And...always look on the bright side of life...
Always look on the light side of life...

For life is quite absurd
And death's the final word
You must always face the curtain with a bow.
Forget about your sin - give the audience a grin
Enjoy it - it's your last chance anyhow.

So always look on the bright side of death
Just before you draw your terminal breath

Life's a piece of shit
When you look at it
Life's a laugh and death's a joke, it's true.
You'll see it's all a show
Keep 'em laughing as you go
Just remember that the last laugh is on you.

And always look on the bright side of life...
Always look on the right side of life...
(Come on guys, cheer up!)
Always look on the bright side of life...
Always look on the bright side of life...
(Worse things happen at sea, you know.)
Always look on the bright side of life...
(I mean - what have you got to lose?)
(You know, you come from nothing - you're going back to nothing.
What have you lost? Nothing!)
Always look on the right side of life...

[OrangeCountyDemocrat]

3. LOSING? LOSING? LOOOOSSSIIIIIIINNNNG????

These are supposed to be our leaders?

LOSING? We're LOSING? How about we've FUCKING LOST BAGHDAD.

LOST, Not Losing, ya Fuckin' Morons!

[saigon68]

4. "BRING EM ON" shouted the AWOL CHIMPANZEE

[Maggie_May]

5. Just stop it!

Bring our troops home now. Enough is enough set a date and bring them home.

[sutz12]

6. Yeah, have another vote. That'll fix things right up.

:sarcasm:

[Botany]

9. but the "freedom is spreading"

[Sad4world]

7. How about

(Un)united States situation bleak (U.S. losing U.S.)

[DemBums]

8. We lost the war the moment the first bomb fell ... (n/t)

Bums

[Phrogman]

20. Absolutely correct and welcome to this website!

e0m

[Burried News]

10. Gee Warner ... sounds like torture isn't working. You should have

done the right thing when Taguba reported what was going on. Instead you stuck with
"Kick Ass" George. You have alot of evil to answer for old man.

General Garner had the integrity to quit. But he was a General; you are just a slimmy Senator ... one of many.

[rodeodance]

11. so Warner is for losing for US lives and limbs (and brains, etc)

Warner said something big needs to happen to jump start the government so it regains some hope after last year’s elections. He suggested another vote on a referendum for the Iraqi people about whether and how long they want U.S. troops to remain.

[rodeodance]

12. so maybe CONDI can make 'something big happen'???

[calimary]

35. I'm sure contradicta thinks she already is doing so, and on a frequent

basis. Every time she sashays past her "husb- I mean the pResident" in those pert suits and Ferragamo heels.

:evilgrin:

Sorry - I'm just in one of those moods today...

[rodeodance]

13. my gawd---look at what he 'solution' is:

Warner said something big needs to happen to jump start the government so it regains some hope after last year’s elections. He suggested another vote on a referendum for the Iraqi people about whether and how long they want U.S. troops to remain.

[rodeodance]

14. Levin wants to set a date for withdrawal.

Sen. Carl Levin of Michigan, the armed services committee’s ranking Democrat, said at an earlier, separate news conference the he does not think the Iraqi government understands that the U.S. will be leaving someday.

He described Iraq as being “on the verge of an all-out civil war” and said Iraq’s leaders “clearly do not want us to even think about reducing troops,” an attitude that “is just going to be an endless quagmire” for the U.S.

In fact, he said Iraq’s leaders seem to think the U.S. presence is the only thing preventing a full civil war from breaking out, believing “we will save their bacon.”

But depending on the U.S. for security instead of reaching an agreement between rival factions for sharing power and disarming militias makes it “more likely they are going to end up in a civil war if they think we are going to step in and prevent it.”

As he has before, Levin recommended that the U.S. make clear it will not be there for the long haul by setting a date for a withdrawal of U.S. forces to begin.

“I believe this is the only way we have a chance of succeeding in Iraq,” he said.

[fooj]

16. The Dems DO have a plan...

get our soldiers the hell out of there. How hard is that for people to understand?

[Theodora]

15. YES IT'S IRAQ!

Do you think the people will listen to this????  AND PAY
ATTENTION???

Finally an ADMISSION by our Congressional overseers!

I'd like to see this admission in the headlines tomorrow, plus
reaction of the readers!!  

And how about the local TV stations.  Will they feature
this????

[UpInArms]

29. Welcome to DU, Theodora!

Glad to have you here!

:hi:

Call your local television station and tell the station manager that you want this covered.

You might get a response or you will find out that your "local" news is controlled by one of 5 major corporations.

[nealmhughes]

17. I honestly don't know what Warner is doing. Half the time he makes sense

and the other half he is doing the Texas Two Step with Dub...

Hasn't he got enough seniority to say what he really thinks and not kowtow to anyone?

Surely he doesn't really trust Cheney, Condislezy, or any of BushCo, Inc. does he?

[mom cat]

18. a referendum for the Iraqi people about WEATHER and HOW LONG they want .

U.S. troops to remain. YES! They need a refferendum to tell the US to GET OUT NOW!

[Sapere aude]

19. So we built all those huge compounds for the insurgency? Just like we

built all the facilities in South Vietnam for the Communists. Why to go Bush! KB&R your builder for the islamofacists.

[wisteria]

21. Wow, Warner thinks we should consider allowing the Iraqi's

to vote on whether they want us to stay or want us to go. Bush will never go for it.

[OKNancy]

22. kick

[Catchawave]

23. Sen. John Warner (R-Va) says situation in Iraq grim

By DALE EISMAN, The Virginian-Pilot
© October 6, 2006
Last updated: 11:03 PM


WASHINGTON - Iraq "is simply drifting sidewise" and its fledgling government is "not living up or not able to meet... the fundamental responsibilities of a government," U.S. Sen. John Warner, R-Va., said Thursday.

It was an unusually blunt critique of U.S. and Iraqi efforts to quell the sectarian violence that has killed more than 2,700 American troops since 2003. Warner's comments came after he returned from a trip to Baghdad and meetings there with American military commanders and Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.

Iraqi leaders must make significant progress against the insurgency within the next 90 days or "we've got to make some bold decisions here in our country," Warner said. He declined to elaborate but said he wouldn't rule out "any option."

As chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Warner has been a prominent and reliable supporter of Bush administration policies in Iraq. "We're not going to give up hope yet, " he said Thursday. "We cannot let this country fall into the hands of international terrorism."

Warner's assessment of the deteriorating security situation was similar to those of some Democratic critics of the U.S. occupation. Michigan Sen. Carl Levin, a Democrat who traveled with Warner this week, warned Thursday that "unless there's a plan adopted very soon... to disband the militias, I believe that this thing leads to civil war."......cont'd


http://home.hamptonroads.com/stories/print.cfm?story=112199&ran=242446

[laruemtt]

24. they're replaying him on C-Span 2 right now (9 a.m.) n/t

[lpbk2713]

25. Mission accomplished.

It has taken a while but the Boosh administration has finally proven things really were better for the Iraqis under Saddam.

[bullimiami]

26. i notice he is still not ready to put the blame where it belongs.

or take responsibility for his part of it.

not giving up hope yet? drifting sideways?

[Double T]

27. 'We' destroyed their country, ruined their economy, took away ........

their jobs and obliterated their infrastructure AND 'WE' NOW are trying to put the blame or 'monkey' on their back. 'WE' have FULL RESPONSIBILITY for creating this disaster and bushco and THIS rethug congress are incapable of fixing this horrendous mess. bushco has not ONLY lost the battles, BUT has ALSO LOST THE WARS!!!

[arewenotdemo]

34. Warner gave them 90 days to make significant progress

otherwise known as a half-Friedman.

From Wikepedia:

"The neologism Friedman, meaning a period of six months, has been coined in mock tribute to (Thomas) Friedman, based on his repeated optimistic predictions that within six months from the time of his writing, the success or failure of the American project in Iraq would be known."

Time must be running short.

[sugapablo]

30. damn

:(

[bif]

31. They want us out last week!

No need to vote on that.

[LibDemAlways]

32. Just a matter of time before our departure looks like this:

Chimp is just hoping he's long gone by then and replaced by a Dem so he and his thugs have someone else to blame it on.

[Catchawave]

33. He's certainly not supporting Stay the Course !

A sure sign he's retiring in '08 ! Head's up Virginia :D

[Sad4world]

36. The bird doesn't know how to fly

http://www.memritv.org/Search.asp?ACT=S9&P1=1285