Snow Reveals ’80 Percent’ Of Bush’s Advisers Opposed Iraq Surge

When announcing the Iraq “surge” last January, President Bush emphasized that he and his advisers led a “comprehensive” review of past mistakes in Iraq, concluding that Iraq needed 30,000 more U.S. troops:

[M]y national security team, military commanders, and diplomats conducted a comprehensive review. … And one message came through loud and clear: Failure in Iraq would be a disaster for the United States. Our military commanders reviewed the new Iraqi plan to ensure that it addressed these mistakes. They report that it does. They also report that this plan can work.

Bush’s assertions were at best disingenuous, as several of his advisers opposed the surge. Former Multi-national Force Commander Gen. George Casey said “more is not necessarily better.” Again, in January 2007, Casey said a “surge” could be “counterproductive.” But Bush canned Casey, claiming he “had become more fixated on withdrawal than victory.”

The Joint Chiefs of Staff as well as conservative members of Congress also recognized the futility of increasing troop levels.

Yesterday, in a speech in California, former White House Press Secretary Tony Snow revealed the extent to which Bush ignored his advisers when deciding whether to implement the Iraq “surge” in January 2007:

He praised Bush for increasing U.S. troop levels in Iraq despite widespread unpopularity for the war at home and abroad. He said 80 percent of Bush’s advisers opposed last year’s military surge in the nation, which still faces an uncertain future.

“Everybody was telling him, ‘You’re crazy, don’t do this,’” Snow said. “You get the chills. He’s really unafraid to take the hits if he thinks he’s doing the right thing.”

Some Bush’s advisers are still wary of Iraq’s future. Last month, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Middle Eastern Affairs Mark Kimmitt said the surge is unlikely to succeed. “If I had to put a number to it, maybe it’s three in 10, maybe it’s 50-50, if we play our cards right,” he said.

Digg It!