Colin Powell: ‘We Are Losing’
By on Dec 17th, 2006 at 11:03 am
Colin Powell: ‘We Are Losing’
Today on CBS’s Face the Nation, former Secretary of State Colin Powell said he agreed with the Iraq Study Group that the situation in Iraq is “grave and deteriorating.” He disagreed with incoming Secretary of Defense Robert Gates’ assessment that the U.S. is neither winning nor losing in Iraq. “We are losing,” Powell said. Watch it:
[flv http://video.thinkprogress.org/2006/12/powelllosing.320.240.flv]
Full transcript:
POWELL: I agree with the assessment of Mr. Baker and Mr. Hamilton. It’s grave and deteriorating. As Secretary-designate of Defense Bob Gates said at his confirmation hearing, we’re not winning. So it’s grave and deteriorating, and we’re not winning. We are losing. We haven’t lost. This is the time now to start to put in place the kinds of strategies that will turn this situation around.
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wait … i just had a thought, and it may explain Bush rhetoric. Bush has never actually defined what victory is, correct? therefore, without a definition for victory is losing also not possible? Doesn’t make sense, but i think with fuzzy Bush logic it does, and it would explain a whole lot.
December 17th, 2006 at 11:15 amIncoming Secretary of Defense, not State
December 17th, 2006 at 11:17 amPowell has had perhaps a unique position to blow the whistle on the warmongering administration that is destroying America as we know it, but he has always put allegiance to BushCo ahead of love of country.
Now he says “This is the time now to start to put in place the kinds of strategies that will turn this situation around.”
That time has passed, with the help of Powell and the rest who choose loyalty to the Preznit over patriotism. How many more must die?
December 17th, 2006 at 11:26 amLiar! Field Marshall Laura “Pickles” Bush said that freedom is on the march and that we should not pay attention to the mass kidnappings, daily assassinations, car bombings and mortar attacks and we should focus on the transformation of the US military into a pack of Cub Scouts and Peace Corps volunteers.
Besides, what does Colin Powell know when compared to Pickles?
-GSD
December 17th, 2006 at 11:30 amJust cuz he lied his hiney off about the WMDs (which he had to do, or else you goomers woulda NEVER supported Preznit Bush Jr.’s righteous war of conquest), now he’s all contrite and turnin’ traitor on us.
And before you slam me sayin’ that his prior service means he CAN’T be a traitor… I got two things to say…
1. Benedict Arnold (look it up)
and…
2. What has he done for us LATELY?
December 17th, 2006 at 11:31 am“We are losing.”
No, Gen Powell, we have lost. No one is admitting it yet.
December 17th, 2006 at 11:31 am2. What has he done for us LATELY?
Comment by The Trucker Pundit
Running his mouth, confirming what we already knew is not helpful at this point, unless he’s willing to be a witness for the prosecution. Wanna make any bets on that one…?
December 17th, 2006 at 11:38 amTime to pull the troops out of Iraq, but Bush refuses to do it, so the new Congress must pull the plug on funding it and call for Dubya to resign too!
December 17th, 2006 at 11:47 amFebuary 5, 2003.
Colin’s legacy-R.I.P..
December 17th, 2006 at 12:32 pmColin Powell warned president Bush, but eve one ignored his advice, and put it down to turf war with Donald Rumsfield.
December 17th, 2006 at 12:36 pmNow he is put-down for speaking out?
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Duh…
What’s next, Powell informing us that the sky is blue?
December 17th, 2006 at 12:49 pmTime to pull the troops out of Iraq, but Bush refuses to do it, so the new Congress must pull the plug on funding it and call for Dubya to resign too!
The Democrats will not de-fund the war at this juncture. GDumbya is out on a “listening tour” and apparently gathering the rope necessary to hang himself. My guess is that the Democrats will let him tie the knot, put the noose around his own neck and take a “flying leap of faith” off the platform with his stupid “troop surge” strategery.
It is GDumbya’s war. The Democrats will not give him an excuse for his failure by denying him the funds to play out his last great folly in Iraq.
December 17th, 2006 at 12:52 pmNice words… Four years late and $300 billion short.
December 17th, 2006 at 12:57 pmColin, STFU.
December 17th, 2006 at 1:10 pmWhy does Colin Powell hate our troops, hate our freedom, hate America, side with the terrorists, coddle Osam bin Laden, and embolden our enemies?
December 17th, 2006 at 1:47 pmThe Bush gulag: Where are the bodies? Press won’t ask
http://www.correntewire.com/the_bush_gulag_where_are_the_bodies_press_wont_ask
Submitted by lambert on Sat, 2006-12-16 13:14.
Bush Torture Policies | Bush | gulag | prison camps
Once more let’s do some very simple arithmetic:
We know that we’re holding thousands of prisoners (estimates range from 7,000 to 35,000).
Gitmo holds only 500.
So, where are the missing thousands? The only alternatives I can think of:
They’ve been released
They’re still in jail
They’ve been disappeared.
Barring divine intervention, the bodies of the missing thousands occupy time and space in this world. Where are they?
December 17th, 2006 at 1:52 pmMr. Powell maybe “Jack the Ripper” will win yet or are some things just logically impossible?
December 17th, 2006 at 2:02 pm17/ there seems to be reports from Pakistan that thousands were handed to the Americans and simply dissapeared ……… basically been tortured and killed…………… this will come out soon
December 17th, 2006 at 2:05 pmClarification: The US has lost. NOW get your thieving oil men and contractors out of Iraq!
December 17th, 2006 at 2:06 pmTobey Tall — got a link on that Pakistani info?
December 17th, 2006 at 2:10 pm21 / im looking for it
December 17th, 2006 at 2:20 pmhttp://www.cageprisoners.com/articles.php?id=17937
heres a glimpse although the other two I read had definate American involment …still looking
December 17th, 2006 at 2:23 pmthis will come out soon
Comment by Tobey Tall — December 17, 2006 @ 2:05 pm
It does seem that the truth does eventually come out. I hope in Bush’s lifetime, however, so he can be held accountable.
December 17th, 2006 at 2:32 pmthis will come out soon
Comment by Tobey Tall — December 17, 2006 @ 2:05 pm
It does seem that the truth does eventually come out. I hope in Bush’s lifetime, however, so he can be held accountable.
Comment by unbelievable — December 17, 2006 @ 2:32 pm
Don’t bet your life on that UnB – W is planning to sequester all the paper that his admin generates in a half billion dollar locked safe, called the presidential library.
December 17th, 2006 at 3:10 pmDarwin? Try Machiavelli. An even more far-fetched offshoot of the Darwin Principle is floating around, which some hawks have tossed out in meetings, although not seriously, one administration official said. It holds that America could actually hurt Iran by backing Iraq’s Shiites; that could deepen the Shiite-Sunni split and eventually lead to a regional Shiite-Sunni war. And in that, the Shiites — and Iran — lose because, while there are more Shiites than Sunnis in Iraq and Iran, there are more Sunnis than Shiites almost everywhere else.
Wow.
December 17th, 2006 at 4:52 pmSOMEONE in Vice President Dick Cheney’s office has gotten everybody on this city’s holiday party circuit talking, simply by floating an unlikely Iraq proposal that is worthy of a certain mid-19th century British naturalist with a fascination for natural selection.
We shall call it the Darwin Principle.
The Darwin Principle, Beltway version, basically says that Washington should stop trying to get Sunnis and Shiites to get along and instead just back the Shiites, since there are more of them anyway and they’re likely to win in a fight to the death. After all, the proposal goes, Iraq is 65 percent Shiite and only 20 percent Sunni.
Sorry, Sunnis.
December 17th, 2006 at 4:53 pmWith all of you wizards and intellectuals having solutions, I wonder why YOU don’t step up to the plate and give it a try. I never heard of so many cronies with nothing to do but complain about the actions of other people…….. Hope someday youo find yourself in the middle of the same kind of strong criticism your Leaders are going through today. With your ability to read minds and declare intentions you will probably have the whole mess over in 14 days or less without a loss of life. So have at it. But on the other hand if you aren’t involved quit your compolaining and support the people who are doing the work!
December 17th, 2006 at 7:08 pmwhat’s compolaining?
December 17th, 2006 at 7:54 pm> support the people who are doing the work!
What kind of work would that be pray tell?
And I would hope everyone had that “I support our troops” bumper sticker on his SUV! God gracious!
In other news, the WaPo is still not convinced about that Civil War thing. On the front page, they use quote/endquote in a frowning manner:
Former secretary of state unconvinced that additional forces will reverse “civil war” in Iraq.
December 17th, 2006 at 8:27 pmThats what BushCo gets for taking advantage of Powell for years and years. Mind you the Powell Doctine was and is “overwhelming force and quick victory.” We went in with a slim strike force and achieved no victory. I don’t like the fact that Powell’s position here lends itself to the McCain-Lieberman troop increase, regardless of his honesty.
The war is lost. There aren’t any humane or reasonable solutions. It will be years if not a generation before Washington comes to a consensus on this, especially because of the money involved. Between oil, military bases, for profit mercenaries, private contracts, insane corruption, guarding against a strong Iranian oil market in Euros (the “Iranian bourse”), and I’m sure a laundry list of other bottom line considerations, there is no stopping the corporate/military ostriches from burying their heads further in the sand.
Given that situation there aren’t alot of options. To get our troops home I doubt anything short of congress cutting off funds will work. And even that is more on the pipe dream side of things. And the Democrats playing politics to let Bush hang himself here also deserves a dose of condemnation.
I predict the war will be over when our troops decide to stop fighting there. Something on the order of the winter soldier hearings
Its pretty sad there might no be any money left for them to get the medical attention they deserve when they get back though.
__
Oh… Dave. We intellectuals saw this failure of a war for what it was by the fall of 2002. Four years of strong criticism hasn’t budged the BushCheneyDestroyAmrerica squad one bit. And Bush is not our leader by any means. Don’t ever capitalize leader either, thats creepy. Is he god to you?
December 17th, 2006 at 9:11 pmFormer Secretary of State Mr Colin Powell is in an unique position to make the definitive assessment here. We can only wonder if this discussion as to “Losing the War in Iraq” now would be taking place IF Mr Colin Powell’s assess of how to WIN the Iraq War had been followed from the “get go” three or more years ago when he was Secretary of State.
Instead Mr Rumsfield and VP Mr Cheney “fixed” so that his initial assessment and advice to the US Government was bypassed-ignored-stonewalled by the “usual suspects” who had to do it “their way or the Highway” as it turned out for Secretary of State Colin Powell who was, is it fair to say, shown the exit door and pushed out it by the “usual suspects”>
Reading in Saturday’s NY Times that “Options Weighed For Surge in G.I.s to Stabilize Irag” as of Winter 2006-2007 puts Mr Powells “booted out” in perspective. His Dept of State recommended among other key factors sufficient US Troops in the first place,(350,000 or more?) NOT the “Less is More Eh!” Defence Sec Rumsfield approach of 150,000 or so.
So we can only wonder the “IF”. Former Sec of State Colin Powell served two tours in Viet Nam. The ones who made the key decisions, like it or not,,have never seen the elephant i,e had live shots fired their way.
How ironic that one of them VP Cheney instead shot his hunting partner recently.. The act and its metaphor are really what is wrong here and what “might have been” is not.
December 17th, 2006 at 9:36 pm[...] Now, Colin L. Powell, says the United States is Losing what he described as a “civil war” in Iraq and that he is not persuaded that an increase in U.S. troops there would reverse the situation. [...]
December 17th, 2006 at 9:38 pmIMPEACH re #31—you are so irresponsible..and silly…
December 17th, 2006 at 9:58 pmthe war…is NOT yet lost…although dire…and a troop increase along with other political/military/clandestine strategies might yet rescue the situation. Any clear informed and rational (logical) thinking person knows not to impugn the correctness of an enterprise (the invasion of Iraq) and its subsequent very faulty implementation by arrogant self-styled intellects Cheney and Rumsfeld.
vladh0007
Wasn’t Colin Powell the only one in Bush’s murderous administration smart enough to say, regarding potential invasion of iraq, “If you break it, you bought it”? I’m glad to see he’s still speaking what he believes.
December 17th, 2006 at 10:13 pm(I, on the other hand, think we lost the Iraq war the day we invaded.) So, looks like Bush bought it. But, as usual, when a polititian makes a terrible mistake, I get to pay for it.
Steve P., re# 35—forgive me,but that too is extremely silly :”I, on the other hand, think we lost the Iraq war the day we invaded.” You need to read more and analyze more.Among the signposts of futility, consider the disatrous dissolution of the Iraqi army sanctioned by Rumsfeld (and presumably by Cheney and the somewhat challenged Bush).Just spend a few moments thinking about that alone. Fighting the war on the cheap (Rumsfeld’s lunatic obsession) which ushered in tremendous chaos for lacking boots on the ground in the period immediately after the initial victory by US armed forces;and later led to this monster Sadr escaping and for lack of enough troops and resolve, failing to arrest this madman.This was a huge, huge turning point.
December 17th, 2006 at 11:09 pmDepends on what “IS” IS!!!!
December 17th, 2006 at 11:27 pmif any of you rectums have never served iin the military, shut up!!!! Its the liberal press that turned the war against Bush. Congress voted for it, all through the 90’s, the liberal democrats was saying Sadam had to go. Now when its not going right you all have turned against the President and the country, look up the meaning of the word
December 17th, 2006 at 11:41 pmtraitor, then look in the mirror.
Well, yeah. Since the Bushites can’t define what victory is, of course we’re not winning. Most mideast experts now say that the American presence will have very little influence on what happens in Iraq.
December 17th, 2006 at 11:53 pmWe’ve lost our ability to control anything.
Except to get our troops blown up.
Way to fack up, Chymp.
Dear Lyle.
December 17th, 2006 at 11:58 pmDanang & Phu Bai, 1969 – 70.
I’ve been against this fiasco since the first shot.
Your hero stacked the deck and dealt from the bottom.
He deserves impeachment and prison.
And you….. Well, I’ll trust in karma to deal with you.
Apparently Dave and LYLE SMITH are the same person because they both make their inane comments in bold to try to make them sound more important.
December 18th, 2006 at 12:10 amThe “loss” is obvious. Only bUSH and Australia’s PM, Howard, refuse to admit it, because in that admission they are burying themselves in responsibility. Colin Powell’s comments are just another entry into the log-book.
Useful comments, 2 or 3 years late. bUSH should be impeached and jailed for life. Cheny in the next cell. Charge: “crimes against humanity”.
December 18th, 2006 at 12:13 amWhen will this stuff make it to congress and we start real proceedings to rid ourself, and the planet, of the most dangerous man on the planet – Dubya.
December 18th, 2006 at 1:11 amNo, it’s not “…we are losing.”
December 18th, 2006 at 1:34 amIt’s “We are losers.”
I am not a fan of bad news.
December 18th, 2006 at 3:27 amDoes this mean no Brittany Spears record sales in Iraq for the time being?
December 18th, 2006 at 3:30 amTragic humor of the day: Lyle #37 says “Its the liberal press that turned the war against Bush.”
Silly me. I thought it was the Iraqi insurgents and the foreign jihadists who turned the war against Bush, but brilliant Lyle now illuminates: it’s the dirty press. [Is it too late to impeach the Founding Fathers for guarantying the right of free speech in the First Amendment to the Constitution? Those uppity citizens and journalists who insist on spreading truth cause nothing but confusion!]
The decision to start this war was perhaps the greatest strategic error in the history of the United States. That said, once Bush, in our name, lit the house on fire, the fire became a great danger to the entire region and even to the world. Both morally and stategically, we have an obligation to extinguish the fire that we never should have permitted Bush to ignite. But can we? Certainly three years ago, and even two years ago, an increase in US troop levels might have sufficed to suppress the insurgency that Bush’s policies provoked, and put out the fire, allowing real reconstruction to begin. That was then, which is now a distant memory. Even if the US political mood permitted it, could a surge in US troop levels at this late date possibly achieve what it might have two or three years ago?
A second, important question: is the Bush administration, whose demonstrated lack of judgment and honesty produced a true crisis that harms our country and our world, capable of cleaning up its own mess? Can the incompetent correct the consequences of their own monstrous incompetence? On this question I think there is only one clear answer: NO!
Bush has repeatedly and systematically violated his oath to “preserve, protect and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States.” He merits impeachment, conviction, and removal from office on multiple grounds. Clinton’s acquital by the Senate made it clear that the Senate did not view prevarication about consensual adultery to rise to the Constitutional leverl of “High Crimes and Misdemeanors.” Why? Because “when Clinton lied, nobody died”. Bush’s lies have killed 3000 US troops and hundreds of thousands of Iraqis. [Strange: supposedly we are in Iraq to help/liberate the Iraqis, but their deaths by the hundred every day get buried on page 18 of our papers! Does that look like we really care about them?]
G W Bush merits impeachment and removal from office on multiple grounds. Being honest with ourselves about that would do a great deal to cleanse our own dirty body politic, and to show to the 95% of world population with whom we share the planet that we recognize our terrible error, and that we are honest enough to take serious steps to correct our errors. Bush is worse than “wrong”; he has violated the Constitution of the United States, and he has violated international law by waging a war of agression. We must remove him from office. If we were truly honest we would also try him for his multiple crimes.
Some defend Bush from his much deserved impeachment and removal from office by saying that Cheney would make an even worse president. Wake up! We have already had Cheney as de facto president for years! If the Congress grows enough spine to do its duty and impeach Bush, it is likely that Cheney would be implicated and also go down. In the unlikely event that Cheney survived, he would have a brief administration, weakened politically and restrained by a reinvigorated Congress.
The WORST thing that could happen to US democracy would be if Bush escaped both removal and censure. Future presidents would, if that happened, look to his administration as precedent that they, too, could ignore and undermine the Constitution, and not be held accountable.
George W. Bush is a criminal, and he must be removed from office. If he is not removed, the integrity of our democracy is at grave risk.
December 18th, 2006 at 4:24 am[...] story No Comments so far Leave a comment RSS feed for comments on this post. TrackBack URI Leave a comment Line and paragraph breaks automatic, e-mail address never displayed, HTMLallowed: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <code> <em> <i> <strike> <strong> [...]
December 18th, 2006 at 4:41 amAll this mess, began during the senior Bush era i.e., coveted by the grey eminence and arrogant James Backer! Junior is only pawn of the latter and sure not competent enough in sustaining the podium!
December 18th, 2006 at 7:51 amThe US loses wars because the US does not fight to win them. The object of war is to blow things up and kill people until the other side has had enough and gives up. The US plays by different rules from our opponents who will have no qualms whatsoever about killing civilians, but then hiding behind civilians and children.
It is no wonder the US army ia about broken, because the US population through it’s liberal media and polititians will not support what is required to win a war. To win a war, hands must be bloodied, and we have too many people in this country who just want to “feel good.”
Indeed, the days of the United States as a world power are drawing to a close. It’s going to be interesting to see how some members of the stupid American public like living under the conditions we will soon be living under, and by the rule of terroristic fanatics.
December 18th, 2006 at 10:23 amI strongly agree with “Dave” (comment 28). These are difficult matters and it is so easy to think that they can be solved from behind some oak desk far from the arena by people who have no accountablity for the outcome. We all agree that matters are not going well enough in Iraq. So where are all the good ideas to get it right. If you can’t add value to the solution then leave it to those who we elected to do the job.
December 18th, 2006 at 11:26 am“Indeed, the days of the United States as a world power are drawing to a close.”
Bring it on, Chumley!! The U.S. has needed a good swift kick in the pants for years! American arrogance has cost millions around the world their lives and millions here don’t give a crap–you among those millions, apparently!
“It’s going to be interesting to see how some members of the stupid American public like living under the conditions we will soon be living under, and by the rule of terroristic fanatics.”
The rule of terroristic fanatics? Dude, what are you smoking? What makes you think they’re big enough for anything like that? American women won’t wear burqas and that’s that! And what’s this about the “liberal media” ruining support for the war? It was Rumsfeld who told the army to fight with the army they’ve got instead of the one they wanted when they said that they didn’t have enough troops or supplies! Sorry, T.J., but you can’t hang that one on us liberals–you have your good ol’ GOP to thank for the miserly way they’ve treated the troops! This is a greedy, shameless, heartless administration we’ve got here–completely capable of turning on their own people if it would help the bottom line they or their corporate overlords are forever chasing.
That includes you, Chester. Think they won’t raise you on promises just to drop you later? Think again. And think long and hard about all this “liberal media” crap–if the liberals had control of the media, would a show like The O’Reilly Factor even be on the air? How about Fox News, that great citadel of genuine information(NOT!!)? Don’t get me started on Clear Channel!! Liberal media, my big giant butt!! The conservative media just yells “liberal media” whenever they think there’s too much dissent from their viewpoints!! Not only have you been had, dear boy, you continue to be had every single day of your life! Shoot, the Christian right has been had, too! But they’ll take that wife-beating they get from the GOP if it means not voting for Democrats!
GOP government: Government for the haves by way of the have-nots consistently being had by the haves. Government by carrot-and-stick, bait-and-switch. Where democracy is just an advertising slogan to move troops around the world. (Government run like a business, indeed.)
You like it? I hope so. You’re next. If they got rid of Rumsfeld, they’ll find a way to stick it to you, too. Maybe they have, and you didn’t know it. Or more likely, didn’t want to know it.
December 18th, 2006 at 4:53 pmBack before the illegal invasion of Iraq the administration trotted Powell out to give a presentation of the satellite photos of “evidence” of the WMDs. This was after Powell was one of the very few dissenting voices over the (pre)invasion of Iraq. First he was silenced, then “asked” to give the presentation. You could see that Powell was very uncomfortable during the presentation (I watched the whole thing) and didn’t believe what he had been instructed to say. Now he is no longer bound by the administartion so he’s speaking up. I say good for him, he has some balls at least. I bet he is even in danger of losing his army pension. Thankfully we still have a few good people in and around gov’t.
December 18th, 2006 at 7:07 pm[...] This weekend, former Secretary of State Colin Powell said that “we’re not winning. We are losing.” Asked about Powell’s comments, Snow replied, “I’m not playing the game any more.” Watch it: var flvsnowwinning3202409252 = new SWFObject(’/wp-content/plugins/flvplayer.swf?file=http://images1.americanprogress.org/il80web20037/ThinkProgress/flv/2006/12/snowwinning.320.240.flv&autoStart=false’, ‘em-flvsnowwinning3202409252′, ‘320′, ‘260′, ‘6′, ‘#ffffff’); flvsnowwinning3202409252.addParam(’quality’, ‘high’); flvsnowwinning3202409252.addParam(’wmode’, ‘transparent’); flvsnowwinning3202409252.write(’flvsnowwinning3202409252′); [...]
December 19th, 2006 at 10:17 am[...] Bush Cheerleader Colin Powell: ‘We Are Losing’ [...]
December 20th, 2006 at 1:23 pm#53 – Nikolai, your’s is one of the few voices of intelligence.
Thanks for speaking up.
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