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Pace: Don't Worry About Iraqi Troop Backsliding
Yesterday's White House "benchmark" report on Iraq noted some backsliding on Iraqi troop readiness, in particular on the important question of whether Iraqi troops can operate independently.
At his press briefing this afternoon, the outgoing chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, Marine General Peter Pace, conceded the point, and clarified that the number of Iraqi Army battalions operating independently has declined from ten in January to six today. But he also cautioned against reading too much into the drop-off:
Let's concede Pace's point that as "units operate in the field" they incur casualties and equipment damage that impact readiness. That's military reality. But the broader question is why there aren't offsetting increases for those declines based upon improved capabilities among other battalions as they progress from being "in the lead" of operations to outright independence. Pace concedes the issue when he talks about wanting to see battalions progress through the overall readiness assessments. That, however, should probably make Pace more concerned about the backsliding than he emphasized this afternoon.
Josh
Zachary
Cheney and Bush have failed. The longer we wait to admit it, the more other people are going to suffer.
July 13, 2007 4:49 PM | Reply | Permalink
What a useless bunch of idiots the Iraqis have turned out to be. Theyre so interested in killing Americans they can't get organized and kill each other. The cheek!
Note to Iraqis: There is no prize for trying to our-incompetent the Bush Admin. none at all. Please start behaving as if you had a brain.
July 13, 2007 4:58 PM | Reply | Permalink
Don’t you worry General Pace, we won't read too much into this latest bit of bad news. After all, there are still six units operating independently, so I guess the glass is a little more than half full.
Enjoy your retirement.
July 13, 2007 5:02 PM | Reply | Permalink
His words echo the Rumsfeldian purge of all independent critical thinkers from the upper echelons of the military during the reign of Emperor Bush II. America needs some Generals with more battle leadership skill than Cold war political sensibilities for a change. The days of America being able to afford having politician hack Generals is at an end. We need real leadership similar to that of Patton and MacArthur, rather than uniformed politicians like Pace, Myers and their predecessors for the last 50 years.
July 13, 2007 6:23 PM | Reply | Permalink
I agree the Iraqis are not standing up. On the other hand it seems to me that after decades of being oppressed, and now being occupied and daily assaulted in their homes, that these people are simply burnt out.
I cannot blame people who are totally worn out, burnt out, and whose daily life has been simply erased - for seeming to drag their feet.
Yes, it's time for us to leave in an orderly way. And to leave an international peace-keeping force behind in our stead. But what good does it do to blame the Iraqis for our stupidity and arrogance? Well, honestly, I blame bush for that. But likely they blame us - and rightly so!
July 13, 2007 8:47 PM | Reply | Permalink
TheraP
How can we get upet at people doing what they have been done there for thousands of years.
July 13, 2007 9:36 PM | Reply | Permalink
Narrow band? Minor variations? Going from 10 to 6 is a 40% drop! Is Pace saying there has been a 40% casualty rate among Iraqi troops? If so, they have been trained to do little more than get themselves killed.
Why do people sit there when Pace and Gates make stuff up like this? They are playing the American public for fools. And why don't the reporters ever challenge them on statements like this? Whose side are they on?
July 13, 2007 10:23 PM | Reply | Permalink
The Iraqis are tired all right, tired of us being in their country. Let me say that again, because I often seem to forget it when I think about this problem, THEIR COUNTRY.
July 13, 2007 10:43 PM | Reply | Permalink
General Pace wasn't able to reveal that these missing divisions are going on vacation during August with their tribal leaders in the parliament. He can't call them bodyguards, because that makes them enemy combatants and this only confuses the people at the embassy. They have enough little insurgent problems to keep track of.
July 13, 2007 11:37 PM | Reply | Permalink
BATTALIONS???? We're worrying about whether there are six or ten Iraqi BATTALIONS that can operate independently? Oy vey.
A battalion is generally between 500 to 1000 men. So the ostensible big concern here is: how many Iraqi troops can operate independently -- 3000 or 10000? Neither of these numbers is big enough to matter. As we used to say: With all due respect to General Pace, he's ignoring the real problem.
July 14, 2007 6:12 AM | Reply | Permalink
Steve5117:
Perhaps the Iraqis have learned after centuries of wars and occupations that their best option is to simply keep their heads down and wait out the wars and occupations.
I honestly don't think we can "get" the Iraqis to do anything. That's where conquerers and occupiers go wrong to start with!
So I agree. They've been doing what they're doing for centuries now, millenia. And we might as well leave them to it.
And yes, Samsara, it's their country. Amen!
We'd be better off trying to get "our" country on track.
As for generals, I'm done listening to any that are still serving now. Seems like the only way people get promotions (or are allowed to have press conferences these days) is if they pledge allegiance to bush. So when bush turns around and wants us to listen to his generals, well it's nothing more than circular reasoning!
Dear God, let this come to some kind of sand conclusion already.
July 14, 2007 9:32 AM | Reply | Permalink
TheraP
I had lunch yesterday with my right-wing friend who beleives that speaking out against the President means you don't support the troops. I posed the question to him about what the average America would or should if China decided to invade the US for it's coal and oil resources.
When he said he would arm himself and defend his country, I told him that that is exactly what the Iraqis have done against us.
Yesterday I explained to my friend one reason why Pelosi took impeachment off the table was to avoid the political backlash from her being the one who would become Vice President. Today I no longer feel that way.
Impeach Bush and Cheney now is my new mantra after watching Bill Moyers' Journal last night. Moyers had a conversation about impeachment with Bruce Fein and John Nichols. The main point I came away with is: Impeachment is not a constitutional crisis - Impeachment is the cure. Don't mistake the medicine for the cure.
Look for this program on your PBS station or pbs.org and take notes!
July 14, 2007 10:42 AM | Reply | Permalink
Here's some headlines you will never see;
Iraqi police come to the rescue...
Iraqi military drives out local factions...
What a bunch of drivel... the Iraqi police ARE the local factions...
...read this!
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/14/world/middleeast/14iraq.html
July 14, 2007 10:50 AM | Reply | Permalink
"Marine General Peter Pace, conceded the point, and clarified that the number of Iraqi Army battalions operating independently has declined from ten in January to six today."
And they will continue to grow and drop. Why? Because the Iraqis "join" the military, get trained and get armed and then defect to the insurgents fully trained and armed courtesy of the US government. It's a sweet deal for the insurgents!
July 14, 2007 10:55 AM | Reply | Permalink
For some reason I thought this pathetic excuse for a soldier was already gone from the scene...
With his long Nixonesque nose perfectly shaped for inserting in the backside of higher ups in the Bush administration, he backed up every wrong move and assertion about the Iraq War by this administration.
Please Go Away Peter...you've done more then enough damage to the services and this country.
July 14, 2007 12:05 PM | Reply | Permalink
We called people who predicted this five years ago "liberals" and "defeatists", yet they have now turned out to be realists and soothsayers!
And we will probably bet for a bunch of Republicrats again in a year!!!
July 14, 2007 12:46 PM | Reply | Permalink
Steve5117:
Thanks for the good advice.
You know, I was first for impeachment 4 or 5 years ago. And then I saw the "light" about Pelosi being the one to gain, once she became speaker. I could see we needed to bide our time.
But now I've begun to swing back - just as you have - and that's due to the apparent and increasing evidence that bush is simply delusional. Even right wingers are beginning to notice! (witness that piece by Peggy Noonan in WSJ ... SHE now calls his behavior "weird!")
So, the fact that we can be open to reason - and change our minds with the advent of new information, that is sanity and wisdom. And I sense the tide is turning.
July 14, 2007 1:00 PM | Reply | Permalink