Contrary To Pentagon Claims, Gen. Casey Still Warning Against Troop Escalation In Iraq
Contrary To Pentagon Claims, Gen. Casey Still Warning Against Troop Escalation In Iraq
On Dec. 23, an anonymous Defense Department official told the Los Angeles Times that top American military commanders in Iraq, including Gen. George Casey, had “decided to recommend a ’surge’ of fresh American combat forces.”
But in an interview last Friday, Casey told reporters that he still has doubts about an President Bush’s troop escalation plan in Iraq. From today’s New York Times:
The longer we in the U.S. forces continue to bear the main burden of Iraq’s security, it lengthens the time that the government of Iraq has to take the hard decisions about reconciliation and dealing with the militias. And the other thing is that they can continue to blame us for all of Iraq’s problems, which are at base their problems. … It’s always been my view that a heavy and sustained American military presence was not going to solve the problems in Iraq over the long term.
Additionally, according to Casey’s spokesman, the general, as of Dec. 23, had “not recommended more troops be sent here.”
The Bush administration has been heavily pushing the idea that there is support for troop escalation in Iraq. But in reality, the Joint Chiefs of Staff are unanimously opposed to Bush’s plan to send more troops to Iraq, as are prominent conservative senators, including outgoing Foreign Relations committee chairman Richard Lugar (R-IN) and outgoing Judiciary committee chairman Arlen Specter (R-PA). Many military officials believe that Bush has tried to bribe them into supporting his escalation plan by offering a tradeoff of increasing the size of the military.
Casey was “scheduled to shift out of Iraq in the summer.” But that now may “happen in February or March.”
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42 Responses to “Contrary To Pentagon Claims, Gen. Casey Still Warning Against Troop Escalation In Iraq”
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General Casey, thank you for your service
January 2nd, 2007 at 12:13 pmYour fired.
Could these "General's" grow some balls and stage a coup already?
Of course not, they'll just retire instead. Pension before Pride.
Greed. The cowardly excuse for bowing out.
REVOLTING.
January 2nd, 2007 at 12:16 pmJust like Adolf, Shrub-In-Chief is getting rid of the generals who don't agree with him.
January 2nd, 2007 at 12:16 pmDespite the dog and pony show, Bush has already decided to escalate. I think it is pretty funny that after all the "I listen the generals on the ground" bullshit, he is just doing what he wanted to do all along.
January 2nd, 2007 at 12:17 pmAside from the chickenhawk neo-cons, who actually supports this escalation? Anyone with any military experience?
January 2nd, 2007 at 12:21 pmAnd where are the military commanders who support more troops?...
January 2nd, 2007 at 12:21 pmUnder here?
Nope. Over there?
Nope. How about under this?
Nope.
Keep the lie machine going, Shrub. You're going to need more than the usual lies, though. Maybe you can hire Billy Kristol.
Worst. President. Ever.
Yes, Krazny, once again Dubya makes his decision, and then attempts to justify it after the fact.
The generals were useful as long as they supported the policy, but now that they have spoken up against it, they are irrelevant.
January 2nd, 2007 at 12:21 pmCasey was “scheduled to shift out of Iraq in the summer.†But that now may “happen in February or March.â€
Uh huh -- shift out. Right....
January 2nd, 2007 at 12:26 pmThis just reinforces the concept that BushCo has its own agenda and goals for American involvement in Iraq, unspoken and undebated. Bush will not explain why we went in, why we remain there, or why he wants to escalate. It's "because I said so".
January 2nd, 2007 at 12:28 pmI thought the president was listening to the generals, though. Is that not the truth?
January 2nd, 2007 at 12:30 pmFrom the beginning it was apparent the self appointed dictator bush does not get to conclusions based on fact's....The delusional and insane form conclusions first and then go to great length's to make up or try to find fact's or equaly insane with their same thinking......Blessings
January 2nd, 2007 at 12:32 pmChickensh*t COWARDS.
Dec. 20 (Bloomberg) -- General John Abizaid, the top U.S. commander in the Middle East during most of the Iraq war, said today that he will retire in mid-March.
"We're f*cked, I'm outta here!"
C.Y.A., the Military's #1 catch-phrase.
R E A L brave.
January 2nd, 2007 at 12:34 pmDieNowForPeace,
Abizaid (and possibly Casey) was probably given the option of retiring or being fired. Abizaid isn't going to reveal what actually happened until his book comes out.
January 2nd, 2007 at 12:40 pmZ - Ah yes, the book.
January 2nd, 2007 at 12:42 pmThen the movie, then the tv series, then the bubblegum, I can't wait to watch, watch and chew...
How Bush screwed the nation!
I "shifted out" a big ol', well you know. It's most every morning.
January 2nd, 2007 at 12:46 pm#14 - RUCerious,
I can see it now, a few years from now. My Dad, who feels it's unpatriotic to even think criticism of the government during a time of war, loves to read books about war planning and history, wil start collecting and reading books about the Iraq War. He'll surface at some point and say, "You know, this war was really poorly planned and executed. There was no real reason for it"
Ya think, Dad!!?
January 2nd, 2007 at 12:49 pm#15 - Truth, I'm so proud I'm following that one...not.
January 2nd, 2007 at 12:53 pmGWB can only listen to employed Generals, they all keep getting "shifted out".
January 2nd, 2007 at 12:53 pmCasey says no to more troops, so what? Who is listening to what Casey says? Certainly not the Deciderer.
Bush is willing to throw all our resources at Iraq to try to salvage his ego. He doesn't care what happens to the soldiers, or our country for that matter.
The selfish, petulant simpleton needs to be removed from power. Impeachment or a coup or lunch with Putin, they will all work. But it needs to be soon.
January 2nd, 2007 at 12:55 pm#19 - nanlichi ,
January 2nd, 2007 at 1:01 pmPutin will never take out Bush - Bush is doing, single handedly, what the Soviet Union was unable to do in 40 years, bring down the United States of America.
The twin pillars of the coming Bush approach to Iraq appear to be a "surge" in U.S. force levels combined with the sacking of the generals opposed to it.
For more, see:
January 2nd, 2007 at 1:02 pm"Surge and Purge: The Bush Strategy for Iraq."
The MSM needs to be encouraged (by us, their alleged customers) to constantly remind people about how Bush said he would listen to the generals for advice on Iraq. Here they are telling him a troop surge would be a bad idea, and he's flatly ignoring them. When did Bush's idea of how to manage a war suddenly become more correct than the generals'? (And now Gen Casey is getting pushed out, just like Gen Shinseki.)
January 2nd, 2007 at 1:04 pmWaltTheMan..... I agree. Bush is the greatest thing that Putin could ever ask for. Even moreso, he is the answer to Osama's prayers.
Osama could never have done as much damage to America without Bush.
Oh, the irony.........
January 2nd, 2007 at 1:10 pm#10 -
Cheney (and his sockpuppet Dubya) will only listen to the generals that agree with them...... Problem is, aren't any around, so maybe they will promote Barney or the Drunken Bush twins, Barbara and Not-Barbara to General and see if any of them will bark 3 times when asked.
January 2nd, 2007 at 1:20 pmProblem is, aren’t any around, so maybe they will promote Barney or the Drunken Bush twins, Barbara and Not-Barbara to General and see if any of them will bark 3 times when asked.
Comment by upside00
LOL. And the one that can balance a biscuit on her nose until she's told she can scarf it down will ge tthe job!
(I like that "Barbara and Not-Barbara".)
January 2nd, 2007 at 1:33 pmComment by upside00
so maybe they will promote Barney or the Drunken Bush twins, Barbara and Not-Barbara to General and see if any of them will bark 3 times when asked.
I thought they were Jenna and Not Jenna? Are they back in town. I bet they are fun to party with.
January 2nd, 2007 at 1:36 pmI still can't figure out which twin is supposed to be the good looking one. One looks like dad, and the other looks like mom. I can't stand to look at either one.
January 2nd, 2007 at 1:51 pmThe generals are either loyal to the chimp-in-chief or to their soldiers - apparently they are mutually exclusive.
January 2nd, 2007 at 1:52 pmThe generals are either loyal to the chimp-in-chief or to their soldiers - apparently they are mutually exclusive.
Comment by Marie
It's the "new normal" under GWB.
January 2nd, 2007 at 1:59 pmEven lying about his own generals, Incredible!
January 2nd, 2007 at 3:06 pmThe cabal still moves foward with Iran in its sites.
It appears that no one but the lower eschelons of goverment (the pions, the privates, the day to day devotee) will stand up to the cabal, and only to be delt with severely.
Will the cabal dipose the generals, as well, inorder to be able to strike Iran?
Is Israel cabal generator?
Georgie Boy is throwing Casey under the bus! He's found a new scapegoat.
January 2nd, 2007 at 4:17 pm#26 Tom -
Yea, I heard Dubya and Prozac Laura got the twins lifetime AA memberships and free STD and pregnancy tests at the local Planned Parenthood clinic for Christmas.
January 2nd, 2007 at 4:17 pmSomeone needs to fire Casey.
January 2nd, 2007 at 4:30 pm#33 - Karim -
Yea, how can any commander in the field know more than Dubya, the AWOL National Guard Mission-Accomplished Decider! Off with his head!
January 2nd, 2007 at 4:38 pmIn October 2002, Congress authorized President Bush to go to war. The resolution passed the House 296-133 and the Senate 77-23.
The question I have is, when it's clear that a given war no longer reflects the will of the people, can Congress pass a resolution calling on the President to end the war?
I'd like to know.
January 3rd, 2007 at 3:35 amThe Generals need to act before bush completely destroys our army, marine corp and now our entire navy is endangered by the game of chicken with our armada in the Gulf.
See Harpers magazine online april issue AMERICAN COUP D'ETAT: Military Thinkers on the Unthinkable.
January 3rd, 2007 at 7:31 amI can't believe ANYONE is calling for a coup. End american democracy and install a military dictatorship, to end bush's reign of error? It's a horrible idea, and if you think the generals are gonna run the country in a way you like, i respectfully submit that you are deluded.
January 3rd, 2007 at 3:42 pm#37 -
Um, Zenji, if you haven't noticed already, American Democracy as established by our Founding Fathers over 200 years ago has ended. George Bush took care of that himself. I think that the Generals might actually do a better job of running this country. They may have the military as their top priority, but perhaps that is better than a decider who has the enrichment of his cronies and the stoking of his ego as his highest priorities.
January 3rd, 2007 at 9:46 pmWorst president ever, indeed. Even sadder fact is, Americans allowed him to be the worst, giving him a second term. What a terrible "sacrafice" for such a mistake. I just hope someone will plug the hole that is Bush's sinking ego and right the ship with a legitiment political and pragmatic solution in Iraq. Sounds like a resounding verdict from the new Congress and Joints Chiefs may come, but to what avail though? Who's to say this man just won't laugh them off as well, simply batting a blind eye to the advisors who should mean the most, and to the checks and balances that have been erased over this presidency. Wouldn't be surprised at all to see more troops, despite public opinion, congress, or the joint chiefs. Tragic, unchecked power.
January 4th, 2007 at 2:53 amThe grand irony here is that, against all the best advice, Bush went to war with too few troops.... waited through months of information that there were not enough troops in Iraq.... and NOW now that the best minds are saying: time to scale it back man, NOW he's ready to send in more troops. With his own re-election HALF of the people (the people for whom he is PUBLIC SERVANT, not CEO) rejected his ideas on war.... yet he called that a mandate. The man belongs on the kindergarten playground, not in the White House. He is juvenile and contrarian and, frankly, idiotic.
January 4th, 2007 at 2:24 pmThe main stream media needs to ask Bush at a news conference, "If the generals on the ground are opposed to the surge and don't believe it will work, what makes you think it will lead to victory?" He needs to be forced to explain to the voters why he is not listening to the generals on the ground.
January 5th, 2007 at 10:48 pm[...] can always ask Gen. Casey about his feelings on troop [...]
April 8th, 2007 at 6:41 pm