The Ho Chi Minh trail leads to Baghdad
John McCain's unwavering support for the Iraq war shows he has failed to learn the lessons of Vietnam
By Muhammad Cohen
01/10/08 "The Guardian" -- - John McCain is trying to win the war in Vietnam on the streets on Baghdad. When asked in Friday's presidential debate to identify the lessons of Iraq, he reminded voters that he missed the lessons of Vietnam. "I think the lessons of Iraq are very clear that you cannot have a failed strategy that will then cause you to nearly lose a conflict," he said.
McCain still believes that in Iraq and Vietnam the problem was the wrong strategy, not the wrong war. It may be the last thing in this campaign McCain says that's true to his core beliefs and record, but he's wrong. Dead wrong.
As Jeffrey Goldberg reports in his cover story in the October issue of the Atlantic, McCain believes that Vietnam was winnable, and that politicians lost that war because they didn't let the military do its job. If only they would have let him and his fellow Navy flyers bomb North Vietnam back to the Stone Age, the US could have prevailed.
Colin Powell, who served two terms in Vietnam as mid-level officer, admits he too was troubled by his Vietnam experience. That led him to formulate the Powell Doctrine, eight questions to be answered before the US takes military action. The Iraq invasion failed at least six of the eight tests, including "Is a vital US security interest threatened?" and "Have the consequences of our action been fully considered?" After opposing an attack on Iraq from the dawn of the Bush administration, Powell got dragged along out of the loyalty to the president, but sees his support for the war as "a blot" on his record.
In contrast, McCain was a cheerleader for the Iraq invasion, remains proud of it and hasn't learned a thing that will help him make the right decision when the next war of choice comes along. "There is no such thing as containment," he tells Goldberg, underscoring the frightening doctrine of pre-emptive war while confirming his aversion to reflection and his Vietnam obsession.
McCain doesn't understand lesson number one of Vietnam: you can't win a political war with foreign military troops. Whatever the war in Iraq began as, it's a political war now. The presence of US troops undermines the legitimacy and appeal of the Iraqi government that needs to win hearts and minds to stop the violence and build credibility.
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http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article20911.htm
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