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General Odom to Senate: Only solution is rapid withdrawal

General William Odom Tells Senate Rapid Withdrawal Is Only Solution

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Related audio file:
Media conference call with StandUpCongress.org on April 1st.

Radio show with ThePeopleSpeakRadio.net on March 17th.

Testimony before Senate Commitee on Foreign Relations:

TESTIMONY BEFORE THE SENATE FOREIGN RELATIONS COMMITTEE ON IRAQBy William E. Odom, LT General, USA, Ret.

2 April 2008

Good morning Mr. Chairman and members of the committee. It is an honor to appear before you again. The last occasion was in January 2007, when the topic was the troop surge. Today you are asking if it has worked. Last year I rejected the claim that it was a new strategy. Rather, I said, it is a new tactic used to achieve the same old strategic aim, political stability. And I foresaw no serious prospects for success.

I see no reason to change my judgment now. The surge is prolonging instability, not creating the conditions for unity as the president claims.

Last year, General Petraeus wisely declined to promise a military solution to this political problem, saying that he could lower the level of violence, allowing a limited time for the Iraqi leaders to strike a political deal. Violence has been temporarily reduced but today there is credible evidence that the political situation is far more fragmented. And currently we see violence surge in Baghdad and Basra. In fact, it has also remained sporadic and significant in
several other parts of Iraq over the past year, notwithstanding the notable drop in Baghdad and Anbar Province.

More disturbing, Prime Minister Maliki has initiated military action and then dragged in US forces to help his own troops destroy his Shiite competitors. This is a political setback, not a political
solution. Such is the result of the surge tactic.

No less disturbing has been the steady violence in the Mosul area, and the tensions in Kirkuk between Kurds, Arabs, and Turkomen. A showdown over control of the oil fields there surely awaits us. And the idea that some kind of a federal solution can cut this Gordian knot strikes me as a wild fantasy, wholly out of touch with Kurdish realities.

Also disturbing is Turkey’s military incursion to destroy Kurdish PKK groups in the border region. That confronted the US government with a choice: either to support its NATO ally, or to make good on its commitment to Kurdish leaders to insure their security. It chose the former, and that makes it clear to the Kurds that the United States will sacrifice their security to its larger interests in Turkey.

Turning to the apparent success in Anbar province and a few other Sunni areas, this is not the positive situation it is purported to be. Certainly violence has declined as local Sunni shieks have begun to cooperate with US forces. But the surge tactic cannot be given full credit. The decline started earlier on Sunni initiative. What are their motives? First, anger at al Qaeda operatives and second, their financial plight.

Their break with al Qaeda should give us little comfort. The
Sunnis welcomed anyone who would help them kill Americans,
including al Qaeda. The concern we hear the president and his aides
express about a residual base left for al Qaeda if we withdraw is utter
nonsense. The Sunnis will soon destroy al Qaeda if we leave Iraq. The Kurds do not allow them in their region, and the Shiites,
like the Iranians, detest al Qaeda. To understand why, one need only
take note of the al Qaeda public diplomacy campaign over the past
year or so on internet blogs. They implore the United States to bomb
and invade Iran and destroy this apostate Shiite regime.
As an aside, it gives me pause to learn that our vice president
and some members of the Senate are aligned with al Qaeda on
spreading the war to Iran.

Let me emphasize that our new Sunni friends insist on being
paid for their loyalty. I have heard, for example, a rough estimate that
the cost in one area of about 100 square kilometers is $250,000 per
day. And periodically they threaten to defect unless their fees are
increased. You might want to find out the total costs for these deals
forecasted for the next several years, because they are not small and
they do not promise to end. Remember, we do not own these people.
We merely rent them. And they can break the lease at any moment.
At the same time, this deal protects them to some degree from the
government’s troops and police, hardly a sign of political
reconciliation.

... <continued>

Re: General Odom to Senate: Only solution is rapid withdrawal

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Originally Posted by NEM (Post 853771)

What makes you think that this guy is qualified to have an opinion like that?

Quote:

Democratic Senate candidate Barack Obama said Saturday he would be willing to send more soldiers to Iraq if it is part of a strategy that the president and military leaders believe will stabilize the country and eventually allow America to withdraw.
"If that strategy made sense and would lead ultimately to the pullout of U.S. troops but in the short term required additional troop strength to protect those who are already on the ground, then that's something I would support," he said.
America cannot afford to withdraw immediately, said Obama, an early opponent of invading Iraq.
That would create more chaos in Iraq and make it "an extraordinary hotbed of terrorist activity," he said at a meeting of the Illinois News Broadcasters Association. It would also damage America's international prestige and amount to "a slap in the face" to the troops fighting there, he said.

....................

Re: General Odom to Senate: Only solution is rapid withdrawal

another general rejects the Bush League company line, and the "bomb em all to hell" crowd is no where to be found...

Silence speaking volumes.

Re: General Odom to Senate: Only solution is rapid withdrawal

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Originally Posted by NEM (Post 853787)

Obama is wrong, and that is one reason I wont vote for him.

I have totally had it with ignorant bastards who are willing to allow more Americans to die for nothing, including Obama.

Quote:

Originally Posted by NEM (Post 807891)

BARACK OBAMA WILL BE THE NEXT PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES

GOD BLESS PRESIDENT OBAMA AND GOD BLESS THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.....

After tonight's debate, if you can call it that, I have totally changed my mind, and I now believe that Senator Barack Obama can, and will win the presidency of the United States in November.

I came away from that debate feeling so very very good, and proud to be a Democrat, and that either of these candidates, Senator Obama, or Senator Clinton, both are highly intelligent, both have a sincere love of country, and either one will be able to make change in Washington D.C..

And regardless of which one ends up the nominee, I will support either one.

But now, as many of you may know, I have been adamantly opposed to Obama's candidacy, thinking he could not win, and now, I admit I was wrong. He can win, and he will win, and the ultimate winner, in the end, will be the people of America.

I can not wait for the, probable, Obama/McCain debates. Obama will chew him up alive and spit him out.

I was so proud tonight to say that I am a democrat. It brought tears to my eyes watching both of them.

================================================== =======

The idiocy of the current administration, his destruction of our economy, his attack on the middle class, his cowtowing to the corporations, and most of all, his totally unnecessary blood letting in Iraq, Americans and Iraqis both, all of this will come to a screeching halt, come November, and the beneficiaries will be the American people.

And, in time, we will heal all of the wounds that he opened up, world wide, and we will regain the respect we once had world wide.

George W. Bush has destroyed all of it, in eight short years, and one can only hope and pray that he receives his just due when the time comes.

And may GOD have mercy on his soul, which I don't believe he has, anyway.

Your voting for obama your not voting for obama will it change again next week?

Re: General Odom to Senate: Only solution is rapid withdrawal

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Originally Posted by elway7 (Post 854371)

Your voting for obama your not voting for obama will it change again next week?

Nem you got a new pet, elway7 has become infatuated with you, throw him/her/it a couple of bones, poor thing got ditched by it's owners back in denver and is looking for a place to call home...Me I would tie to my bumber it cruise down the highway, thats the way I roll.

Re: General Odom to Senate: Only solution is rapid withdrawal

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Originally Posted by jack (Post 854381)

There ya go jack!! actual words and sentences instead of youtube videos and copy and paste (plagiarizing) Now run along and kick a dog or something will ya. Cause thats the way you roll! Right jack!!

Re: General Odom to Senate: Only solution is rapid withdrawal

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Originally Posted by jack (Post 854381)

So using someone's own words to reveal them as a liar is wrong somehow?

Funny, that's what you attempt to do every time you post a couple of sentences from me taken out of context. I guess when you do it it's okay though, yeah?

Re: General Odom to Senate: Only solution is rapid withdrawal

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Originally Posted by a.paul (Post 854392)

So using someone's own words to reveal them as a liar is wrong somehow?

FUNNY, that's exactly what the Frontline series does to the cabal's grand plan. And yet it's dismissed out of hand by Bush loyalists just like yourself.

At this point, is there a post on this forum by you that does NOT show profound hypocrisy?

Re: General Odom to Senate: Only solution is rapid withdrawal

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Originally Posted by PressCoverage (Post 854346)

another general rejects the Bush League company line, and the "bomb em all to hell" crowd is no where to be found...

Silence speaking volumes.

This was posted already.

http://www.patsfans.com/new-england-...ad.php?t=80525

Re: General Odom to Senate: Only solution is rapid withdrawal

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Originally Posted by elway7 (Post 854389)

There ya go jack!! actual words and sentences instead of youtube videos and copy and paste (plagiarizing) Now run along and kick a dog or something will ya. Cause thats the way you roll! Right jack!!

Wrong elway7....See if you were in the joint with me, I would buy people canteen, (You know coffee,snacks) for payment on a hit against you....And I would request that the hit would be ,they used feces and urine that had fermented it for a week and then sh1tbomb you once a week for a month...It could be a hell of a lot worse elway7.

Because I care:)