Kennedy's proposal justified

As questions regarding the war in Iraq continue to grow, the Bush administration has refused to offer a timetable of when to withdraw troops. The administration commented last week that the United States would maintain a full military presence in Iraq until the new government can defend itself.

Furthermore, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice demonstrated a blatant disregard for the authority of the Senate when she evaded and refused to answer questions about the timetable.

For the past several months, congressmen have increasingly called for the president to create a withdrawal plan. Many republicans have even become wary of the war and its increasing costs. However, last Thursday Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.) gave up on his repeated requests for Bush to develop a plan. Instead, Kennedy became the first senator to detail a specific plan of action concerning the withdrawal of American troops.

Looking back at history, it is apparent that Iraq is becoming America's next Vietnam. As of now, over 1,400 American troops have been killed, there are over 10,000 American causalities and the war is costing America about $1 billon a week. Exactly 40 years ago, several years after sending troops into Vietnam, America had the same number of troops and casualties.

From the lessons of history, Kennedy points to the fact that, at the time, we thought we were winning in Vietnam. Retrospectively, he believes our policies were misguided, the administration was not honest with the American public and victory on the battlefield did not imply a victory among the hearts of the Vietnamese people. We suspected the war was fought over independence when it was actually a war for nationalism.

Now, 40 years later we continue the same reckless policies of Vietnam. We have not learned from history - the views of Iraq are misguided and sometimes irresponsible. The administration has failed to level with the American people and tell the truth. Victory on the ground has failed to protect the Iraqi people and has failed to bring order to the state. The people attacking us are Iraqi citizens fighting for some sense of nationalism.

With the Iraqi people electing a government this past weekend, the creation of a plan for U.S. withdrawal is well timed. The election symbolizes the ability of the Iraqi people to control their own destiny. As such, beginning American withdrawal from Iraq will represent a handover from U.S. control to Iraqi control. Given the instability of the region, a well thought out plan is necessary for peace.

As a result, Kennedy has issued a detailed five-point plan. One, the Bush administration cannot continue to control the new Iraqi government - the people of Iraq must be allowed to govern themselves. An international meeting led by the United Nations and the new Iraqi government should be convened to help the Iraqi government transition over the coming months. The United Nations, not the United States, must lead this transition.

Two, for democracy to work, the Iraqi people must not associate troop presence with an occupation. The Iraqi insurgents are not fighting against America as much as they are fighting for the end of the occupation. Therefore, the president should immediately and convincingly issue a statement saying that the United States does not intend to have a long-term presence in Iraq.

Three, after the election, the U.S. should disengage militarily and begin the gradual withdrawal of American troops. As a good faith effort, at least 12,000 troops should withdraw immediately. In addition, it should be made known that the full withdrawal of American troops should be completed by early 2006.

Four, we must meet and negotiate with Iraq's neighbors and the Arab League. In the process, America must work to prevent the external intervention of Iraqi neighbors in order to prevent any ethnic killings. Five, over the next year, we must help to train an effective police and security force in Iraq. Simply recruiting more Iraqis to defend the nation is not enough. We must remove their skepticism of the American government's motives so they feel an allegiance to their sovereign elected government. Should Iraq need increased security, U.N. intervention and troops can be provided at the request of the Iraqi government.

Kennedy's plan is not only logical, but it is also based on the history lessons of Vietnam. With Iraqi insurgents fighting to end the occupation, America must begin withdrawal immediately so that the perception of a long-term occupation does not exist. Only by doing so can we quell the rumors that America is only in Iraq for its oil.

Bush and his reckless Iraqi policies have left America in a quagmire. We will face high costs for leaving and for staying. Regardless, the worst problem with the Bush administration's policies in Iraq is that there is absolutely no policy for exit. Setting a strategy for withdrawal is not a guarantee to the end of violence, but it is better than sailing blindly in foreign waters while neglecting the sounds of the siren.

We must continue to support our troops - a mission that is best completed by bringing them home with honor. If we continue navigating blindly in a foreign land, obstinate to the real reasons for the insurgency, the war in Iraq will balloon out of proportion like the Vietnam War. If we continue, a long-term military presence will not win the hearts of Iraqi people and will fail in the mission of spreading the ideal of democracy.

American leaders cannot disgrace our troops by failing to learn from the past. In Vietnam, America sinned once through its dishonest and reckless sacrifice of human life at war. We cannot continue this sin again.

The president has now been given a plan for exit. He has a right to ignore the calls of a large part of the Senate. If he does, he will hopefully develop his own plan for withdrawal and present it to the nation during his State of the Union Address. If the president rejects Kennedy's plan without offering an alternative, the blood and the treasure of the American people will once again be on Bush's hands.

Sources:

http://kennedy.senate.gov/~kennedy/statements/05/1/2005127703.html