What’s Happened In Iraq Since The Last Time Rumsfeld Testified
What’s Happened In Iraq Since The Last Time Rumsfeld Testified
At a press conference yesterday, Secretary Donald Rumsfeld explained that he declined to testify before the Senate Armed Services Committee about the status of the Iraq war this morning because “my calendar was such that to do it…would have been difficult.” Amidst a firestorm of criticism, Rumsfeld’s schedule miraculously cleared up and, just a few hours later, he agreed to testify.
It will be the first time Rumsfeld has testified publicly about the war before the committee since February 2006. Here’s what’s happened in Iraq since then:
– Approximately 300 U.S. troops have died in Iraq
– Approximately 2,530 U.S. troops have been wounded
– Well over 10,000 Iraq civilians have been killed
– Insurgents have conducted an average of 620 attacks per week
– In March there were 7.8 hours of electricity per day in Baghdad (down from 16-24 hours before the war), last month there were 7.6 hours.
– In March there were 133,000 U.S. troops in Iraq. Today there are 132,000 U.S. troops in Iraq and plans to raise that number to 135,000.
That’s Rumsfeld’s record. Now he has to explain why it shows that we should “stay the course.”
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47 Responses to “What’s Happened In Iraq Since The Last Time Rumsfeld Testified”
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Is Rummy under oath?
August 3rd, 2006 at 10:17 amSaddam wasn’t so bad after all.
August 3rd, 2006 at 10:23 amAt least 17 soldiers and five civilians are under investigation for the rape of an 11-year-old girl at an Israeli air base, the military confirmed yesterday …
http://www.guardian.co.uk/ international/ story/ 0,,1765325,00.html - 43k
A Jewish settler who clubbed an Arab child to death with a rifle butt is sentenced to six months’ community service. Human rights organisations are outraged by the sentence.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/ israel/ Story/ 0,2763,662080,00.html
The Pokemon CD was intact, and that was nearly all that remained of Bushra Abu Kweik and her three children after an Israeli tank shell ripped through the roof of their car during the afternoon school run.
Two other children in a passing white Subaru were also killed by the Israeli shell, the deadliest single episode on a day in which 17 Palestinians were killed as Israel adopted a campaign of “continuous military pressure” against West Bank and Gaza militants.
Israeli soldiers break the silence
Israeli soldiers tell of indiscriminate killings by army and a culture of impunity http://www.guardian.co.uk/ international/ story/ 0,,1563255,00.html
August 3rd, 2006 at 10:23 amI don’t think Cabinet members are generally sworn in for these kind of things.
August 3rd, 2006 at 10:23 amBush and Rumsfeld sure screwed up Iraq and put our troops in harms way for no reason. But, why is the world including all us liberals not demanding a cease fire when 10,000 civilians have been killed in six months. Yet, when Hezbollah commits an act of war and Israel kills 28 civilians, the world demands a cease fire. Either its is acceptable for arabs to kill arabs (I’d hope not) or punishing Bush for his stupid handling of the Iraq war is more important than saving lives (I’d hope not too). There should be consistancy if peace is ever going to come to mideast.
August 3rd, 2006 at 10:26 am“Under oath.” Good one. That made me smile.
August 3rd, 2006 at 10:27 amI don’t think Cabinet members are generally sworn in for these kind of things.
Comment by Judd
Rummy is free to lie, and lie he will. If anyone ever needed swearing in (or swearing at), it’s this administration.
Thanks, Judd.
August 3rd, 2006 at 10:28 amAnd to think we fought world war II in less time and expense.
Goper’s Lament
August 3rd, 2006 at 10:35 amThere should be consistancy if peace is ever going to come to mideast.
Comment by abqmike
Did you miss the whole world telling Bush administration that they are wrong and should get out of Iraq?
August 3rd, 2006 at 10:35 amThe Donald has definately lost his mind.
August 3rd, 2006 at 10:40 amIn junior’s admin., competence is not required.
If you can lie and not have a flashing neon sign on your forehead saying so, you’re given any position available, or that can be made available.
Now he has to explain why it shows that we should “stay the course.â€
Explain. Yeah…okay…that’ll happen. Any “explanation” from this administration is about as informative as a Bulgarian bus scedule.
August 3rd, 2006 at 10:41 amIt will be the first time Rumsfeld has testified… since February 2006. Here’s what’s happened in Iraq since then: - - Hey, “stuff happens.”
August 3rd, 2006 at 10:42 amthe only way to solve all of these problemos here on earth is for the human race to become extinct.
not a bad idea
the bugs are gonna win
save the whales, kill all the humans
the bush adminstration is doing a heckuva job
August 3rd, 2006 at 10:47 amReply to Bush, Father of Islamistan:
In direct response to the horrific attacks of 9/11, Bush and Rumsfeld inadvertently caused the conditions in which a burgeoning fundamentalist Islamic republic can flourish in Iraq.
There is nothing whatsoever ‘inadvertent’ about it. Everything in Iraq is going as the neocons planned.
August 3rd, 2006 at 10:51 amEver seen this behavior on a schoolyard?
August 3rd, 2006 at 10:53 amBully gets clocked by some kid who is fed up with the bullying.
Bully proceeds to kick the shit out of several smaller kids…
Bully can’t/won’t try messing with the kid who clocked him, cause he’s basically a chickenshit.
This story doesn’t seem so far off. By attacking the smaller kid in Iraq, we’ve given aid and comfort to Al Qaeda by providing them with a training ground and a martyrdom arena. Note the similar tactics now being used in Afghanistan.
Way to go Chimp, Darth Cheney and Rummy!
#16
August 3rd, 2006 at 10:55 amTripMaster,
Absolutely. They are just itching for Syria to send troops into Lebanon. Why do you think the US won’t call for a cease fire? Why is Israel taking control of a good portion of Lebanon? They are trying to bring Syria into play. They won’t stop until they do. When that that happens that will give the “excuse” they need to attack Syria and that will bring in Iran….bada bing bada BOOM.
So Rumsfeld is going to testify again afterall? If it is NOT under oath, then his testimony will be baloney and hearsay! Sen. Specter better put him under oath, or Arlen must resign, and be disbared as a lawyer!
August 3rd, 2006 at 10:57 amIf you think that you’re going to get truth and clarity from that bunch, go sit in the corner and write 100 times: “I will learn from experience.”
August 3rd, 2006 at 11:03 amIf you think that Islamic terrorism is caused by our freedom, go sit in the corner and write 100 times: “I am an idiot.”
If you think that force will change hearts and minds, go join the army. QUICK! Not a moment to lose. Bye!
Whichever commitee leader in the Senate fails to swear in Rummy, then that person has thwarted the law of this nation! Every American citizen is forced to be sworn in before testimony in a court of law, or before the Congress, so failure to swear in Rummy would be a slap in the face to all Americans! Plus, if appointed governmental officials are allowed special priviledges, then Americans should all refuse to testify under oath in courtrooms! Democrats must all stand up and walk out of the hearing, if Rummy is not sworn in under oath!
August 3rd, 2006 at 11:06 amThings You Should Know About This Morning…
-Steve Clemons has a must-read potential scoop for anyone with even a passing interest in the 2008 nomination process or the future of the Democratic Party. The short version: Hillary becomes the Dems’ Senate leader and doesn’t run for President…….
August 3rd, 2006 at 11:10 amThat’s Rumsfeld’s record. Now he has to explain why it shows that we should “stay the course.â€
That is simply a ridiculous and rather naive comment. The Secretary does not, and will not, ‘explain’ anything.
August 3rd, 2006 at 11:12 amPost 22 > Hillary would make a bad Senate leader too > she is a warmonger! Real progressives want anti-war leaders now!
August 3rd, 2006 at 11:14 amJust more lies and bs from rummy and the military…The higher up military will say what they are told..Back the liers, thieves and waramongers……Blessings, we need them…Peace, demand it…
August 3rd, 2006 at 11:14 amIraq’s Shia in ‘million man march’
Shias from southern and central Iraq have begun travelling to Baghdad in answer to Muqtada al-Sadr’s call for a “million man march” in support of Lebanon’s Hezbollah.
Waving Iraqi flags and chanting “Death to America! Death to Israel”, the demonstrators mounted convoys of buses and headed for the capital on Thursday, some of them wearing white shrouds symbolising their readiness to accept martyrdom.
CAN YOU NOT SEE YOUR FOOLS TO BE IN IRAQ - NOBODY WANTS YOU THERE EXCEPT BUSH
August 3rd, 2006 at 11:20 amAnd to think we fought world war II in less time and expense.
Goper’s Lament
Comment by Subway Serenade — August 3, 2006 @ 10:35 am
Only because you came late to the party. Like after everyone else was out of bullets.
August 3rd, 2006 at 11:22 amIraq civil war. Yep. That’s democracy in action fer ‘ya.
[from; http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/5243042.stm ]
…”The sectarian violence is probably as bad as I have seen it,” Gen Abizaid told a Senate committee.
A similar warning was contained in a confidential memo to UK Prime Minister Tony Blair by the UK’s outgoing ambassador to Iraq.
William Patey also predicted the break-up of Iraq along ethnic lines.
August 3rd, 2006 at 11:23 amGet Rummy under oath. Then when we catch him in a lie we can bring charges of perjury and throw his ass in jail!
August 3rd, 2006 at 11:24 amVOTE EVERY SINGLE INCUMBENT OUT OF OFFICE.
We can send an incredibly loud, strong message to the entire World this November.
Oust them ALL. There’s no guarantee of 100% change, but we can communicate collectively, and boldly. It’s time.
Even my most hardcore Rupuke friends and family are ready to turn our Nation around, and they all agree it begins with cleaning house.
Now, refusing to testify sounds like a misdemeanor offense at the least to me. What’s up when these crooks start obeying and telling the truth? What’s that all about?
THEY ALL MUST GO.
August 3rd, 2006 at 11:26 amOnly because you came late to the party. Like after everyone else was out of bullets.
Comment by elcanuckistani — August 3, 2006 @ 11:22 am
Believe what you will but without the US’s intervention WWII would have been won by the Axis.
We kept Russia and England afloat prior to officially entering the war.
August 3rd, 2006 at 11:30 am#23
August 3rd, 2006 at 11:31 amBush,
Maybe you can clarify but are you disagreeing with the statement that I made that I think that the US wants Syria to react to this and that this will bring war with Syria and Iran? You sound like you are asking me to prove it then you say The plan is Iraq, Iran, Syria. I don’t get it. Maybe I am smoking something or maybe you are but I don’t see the difference.
Rummy has learned the O’Reilly way of answering questions….get defensive and indignant if he doesn’t like the question. Good thing there are at least some of us who can see through that dismal attempt to deflect criticism and absolve himself of any real responsibility. What a tool he is.
August 3rd, 2006 at 12:03 pmOnly because you came late to the party. Like after everyone else was out of bullets.
Comment by elcanuckistani
Actually America showed up after the agressors had ramped up their military industrial complex and had battle hardened soldiers that had been killing for a few years… they had PLENTY of bullets… were making new “wonder weapons” and had Britian on the brink of collapse and all the other potential allys either had nothing to fight with “China” or had already been conquered by the enemy “France” and “Poland”.
Things didnt look very good for America when we first started… but we didnt take a tit for tat approach either… We tried staying out of that war, but once we were forced into it we went “unconditional surrender” on their asses and cranked up our industrial military complex 10x faster than anyone else and had smart people for leaders that looked for the end game win and no holds bar charged forwards for that win.
Very little comparison can be made to the bumbling idiots that lead America today.
August 3rd, 2006 at 12:06 pmAnother Major difference, every American lived the war during WWII. All men, metals, and materials went to the war effort. Women worked triple shifts, everyone grew victory gardens. In this war, our daily lifes have been impacted very little. We have not had to give up anything for this conflict.
August 3rd, 2006 at 12:16 pmthe neo cons want an all out war in the mid east ! So much the better if Israeli aggression and obvious war crimes against civilian populations consolidate the disparate voices in the muslim world against us ,it only helps bring on the administrations total gamble for control of the rest of the developing world through oil.This has been transparent since before the first of bushes un elections !Israelis just the back door into the much coveted conflict being the UN strategy has failed to produce the desired effect.
August 3rd, 2006 at 12:25 pmThe fact that Israels war crimes began with the kidnapping of 1 israeli soldier when israel has kidnapped 1/2 the palestinian gov’t since the election of Hamas and still holds them captive and only the day before the kidnapping that began this intrusion in the gaza strip for the first time since a year kidnapping 2 Palestinians and also has endlessly bombed the offices of thr palestinian gov,t is all proof that this has nothing to do with Israeli soldiers ! This is an attempt to begin a larger war for control of the mid east with our country doing a remarkable imitation of the nazi’s at home and abroad ! God help us all ( muslims included ) !
Only because you came late to the party. Like after everyone else was out of bullets.
Comment by elcanuckistani
I really hope you were being sarcastic! I don’t take too kindly to anyone defaming our veterans! I’m sure the thousands who gave their lives on Normandie Beach were hoping (praying) that “everyone else” was out of bullets.
August 3rd, 2006 at 12:27 pmHow many became “insurgents” after the US bombed their homes, killing parents, children or friends. The air war is a total failure and has created nothing but enemies. The war was based on lies to congress and the American people. All people that are related to instigating this war and/or are still for this war should be tried, and if found guilty, given the maximum penalty by law. Those that are guilty of war crimes should enjoy the gas chamber.
August 3rd, 2006 at 12:34 pm#36 Krazny
August 3rd, 2006 at 12:34 pmtoo true till this point but that may not remain the case, if we involve Iran and Syria .
The dems all voted to support Israel’s punishment of the civilian population in Lebanon and the war with Iraq wouldn’t they most likely support even a draft to join the party ! They seem to virtually all want war ! They’ve stood shoulder to shouilder with bushco over the war and the worst of israeli aggression and don’t seem particularly upset about the dismantling of our constitution but spend most of their time posturing with woefully few exceptions !
a big war may keep warco’s necks out of the hangmans noose as well as fullfilling neo con wet dreams ! This is an all or nothing gamble and probably began with the stealing of the US elections ! Whats a few lies from the likes of Rumsfeld when 10’sof 1000 are dying to fullfill the all too obvious plans of these criminals !
August 3rd, 2006 at 12:40 pmGood guys ?
August 3rd, 2006 at 1:37 pmHey Islamistan ,you really think KK Kristolnacht is unhappy when Israel is overwhelming its neighbors and punishing them at a ratio of probably 20 to 1 ?You haven’t been paying attention at all then C wants ! Besides the oil ,there is a lot of money to be made by the weapons industry who I’m sure are all broken up by their obscene profits !
August 3rd, 2006 at 1:55 pm#42
And that statement makes you think that the Neo-cons will just say; “Well that’s it. It was fun but I guess its not working out. Let’s call the great plan off.”
Somehow I am not so sure of that.
August 3rd, 2006 at 2:23 pmsure Israeli’s are our back door portal to all out war ! We’ll have to rush in and take over the entire region to protect Israel from their own actions !You may be right about islamic fundamentalist gov’ts but this may just land credibility to neo con plans to transform the region and it’s winner take all ! Its too late to back out now ,Right ?
August 3rd, 2006 at 3:01 pmand yes LETS PUFF ONE !
August 3rd, 2006 at 3:02 pmpeace man !
August 3rd, 2006 at 3:03 pmBush,
August 3rd, 2006 at 3:56 pmGothya. Couldn’t get it. Hard to read the screen with all the smoke in here.
Jefferson, Madison, Adams et al are crying somewhere at the sorry mess of their legacy
August 3rd, 2006 at 3:59 pm[…] Think Progress […]
August 3rd, 2006 at 5:30 pm