Pragmatism From A Politician

It's been all over the news lately that Bush has lost not only the general public at large on the issue of Iraq, but is now losing senior congressional figures in his own party as well. As I'm sure you've heard, Senator Richard Lugar delivered a stark assessment of the Iraq situation on the floor of the Senate yesterday. Its a lengthy piece, but its chock full of the type of common sense insights you will never hear in the soundbite driven debates to be found on the cable TV talking head shows that pass for reasoned discourse these days. Some highlights from his speech:

"I see no convincing evidence that Iraqis will make the compromises necessary to solidify a functioning government and society, even if we reduce violence to a point that allows for some political and economic normalcy."

"I suspect that for some Americans, benchmarks are a means of justifying a withdrawal by demonstrating that Iraq is irredeemable. For others, benchmarks represent an attempt to validate our military presence by showing progress against a low fixed standard. But in neither case are benchmark tests addressing our broader national security interests."

"The risk for decision-makers is that after a long struggle in Iraq, accompanied by a contentious political process at home, we begin to see Iraq as a set piece -- as an end in itself, distinct from the broader interests that we meant to protect."

"American strategy must adjust to the reality that sectarian factionalism will not abate anytime soon and probably cannot be controlled from the top."

"The window during which we can continue to employ American troops in Iraqi neighborhoods without damaging our military strength or our ability to respond to other national security priorities is closing."

"We do not know whether the next President will be a Democrat or a Republican. But it is certain that domestic pressure for withdrawal will continue to be intense. A course change should happen now, while there is still some possibility of constructing a sustainable bipartisan strategy in Iraq..... In short, our political timeline will not support a rational course adjustment in Iraq, unless such an adjustment is initiated very soon."

"To determine our future course, we should separate our emotions and frustrations about Iraq from a sober assessment of our fundamental national security goals."

"...credibility and sustainability of our actions depend on addressing the two elephants in the room of U.S. Middle East policy -- the Arab-Israeli conflict and U.S. dependence on Persian Gulf oil. These are the two problems that our adversaries, especially Iran, least want us to address. They are the conditions that most constrain our freedom of action and perpetuate vulnerabilities. The implementation of an effective program to remedy these conditions could be as valuable to our long-term security as the achievement of a stable, pro-Western government in Iraq."

"We cannot allow fatigue and frustration with our Iraq policy to lead to the abandonment of the tools and relationships we need to defend our vital interests in the Middle East."

"If we are to seize opportunities to preserve these interests, the Administration and Congress must suspend what has become almost knee-jerk political combat over Iraq. Those who offer constructive criticism of the surge strategy are not defeatists, any more than those who warn against a precipitous withdrawal are militarists."

-Ico