Time to Leave Iraq

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Time to Leave Iraq
Eugene Gholz

During his surprise Thanksgiving visit to Iraq, President Bush bluntly said, again, "we will stay until the job is done." In fact, the U.S. job in Iraq is already done.

We removed a terrible dictator from power, verified that there are no weapons of mass destruction, and guaranteed that no one will build them there soon. But Bush has expanded our aims to include creating "a peaceful country."

Unfortunately, our efforts to impose good governance change the incentives of Iraqi political leaders, prolonging internecine violence.

The administration, prominent Democrats, and think tank analysts have each offered their own ideas to promote peace in Iraq. The administration promises to seize the initiative with aggressive patrols and hard counter-attacks against militants. Many Democrats want to increase the number of occupying troops, using American or international forces. Independent analysts prefer to manipulate Iraqi groups like old European empires "divided and conquered." None of these strategies addresses the underlying cause of violence – only the withdrawal of American troops will do that.

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Time to Leave Iraq

Eugene Gholz is an assistant professor at the University of Kentucky's Patterson School of Diplomacy and International Commerce and a member of the Coalition for a Realistic Foreign Policy.