Colin Powell: US is losing Iraq war

[annerevere]

Colin Powell believes U.S. is losing Iraq war

Secretary of State Colin Powell has privately confided to friends in recent weeks that the Iraqi insurgents are winning the war, according to Newsweek. The insurgents have succeeded in infiltrating Iraqi forces "from top to bottom," a senior Iraqi official tells Newsweek in tomorrow’s issue of the magazine, "from decision making to the lower levels."

This is a particularly troubling development for the U.S. military, as it prepares to launch an all-out assault on the insurgent strongholds of Fallujah and Ramadi, since U.S. Marines were counting on the newly trained Iraqi forces to assist in the assault. Newsweek reports that "American military trainers have been frantically trying to assemble sufficient Iraqi troops" to fight alongside them and that they are "praying that the soldiers perform better than last April, when two battalions of poorly trained Iraqi Army soldiers refused to fight."

If the Fallujah offensive fails, Newsweek grimly predicts, "then the American president will find himself in a deepening quagmire on Inauguration Day."

Link: http://www.salon.com/politics/war_room/index.html#insurgents

[writes2000]

1. Thanks for making this a main post.

I'm too new here to make main posts.

This is a huge deal. I hope the Democrats point to it on Monday.

Iraq is FAR from an unqualified success.

[Scooter24]

11. Welcome to DU

:hi:

[helpisontheway]

22. Colin is a wimp that would never admit it...

[HulkamaniacUM]

37. Colin is the only voice of reason in the cabinet

Whether you like him or not, Powell is undoubtedly the only voice of reason in the Bush administration, and he's arguably the top military stategist on the planet. For him to say that the U.S. is losing the Iraq war is a huge indictment against current military policy.

Powell's thoughts on warfare are similar to almost anyone with sense -- only go to war if absolutely necessary, and if you must, make sure you use such overwhelming force that victory is the only possible outcome. Bush has failed to live up to both of the tenants of the Powell Doctrine, and we're paying for it today.

[The Zanti Regent]

54. Please, Belafonte was right.

I won't repeat what Harry Belafonte said, but it's true.

Powell is the phoniest asshole in the world, next to his son. Thank God Stern was finally able to confront little Mikey on the air!

[sendero]

55. Powell...

.... should have told Bush* "I resign" back in March of 2003. He knew this was not going to work, and he sold out his reputation by pretending that he though it might.

Screw him and the horse he rode in on. I have zero, not one shred, of respect for this guy because HE KNEW BETTER.

[allemand]

58. So you wanted Wolfowitz as Secretary of State instead of Powell? n/t

[sendero]

60. Why not...

... IT MADE NO FUCKING DIFFERENCE.

[allemand]

70. I think you "misunderestimate" the neocons.

According to General Clark they (the civilian side of the Pentagon) had a list of countries in line for regime change after Iraq.

According to Seymour Hersh we came pretty close to war with Syria:
"I don't have any empirical basis for it, but if I had to bet, the plan was to go right into Syria. That's why the fourth division was hanging for so long in the desert out there right on the border with Syria. In the early days of the war, before this government figured out how much trouble they were in -- which took them a long time -- they would drive practice runs, somebody told me. Again, I'm just saying what was told to me; this is not something I reported, but I was told pretty reliably, they were doing practice runs that amounted to the distance from the border to Damascus."
http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2004/09/18/hersh_interview/index2.html

And the first country Powell visited after the fall of Baghdad was - Syria.

No wonder neocons also wanted Powell to resign:
"In the early winter of 2002, a co-worker U.S. Navy captain and I were discussing the service being rendered by Colin Powell at the time, and we were told by the neoconservative political appointee David Schenker that "the best service Powell could offer would be to quit right now.""
http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2004/03/10/osp_moveon/index2.html

Further recommended reading:
The State Department's extreme makeover
http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2004/10/04/foggybottom/index.html

I agree that Powell should resign now, but not in March 2003.

[sendero]

71. Sorry...

.... your argument is, if I understand it correctly, that without Powell things would be much worse.

I don't buy that at all. We didn't go into Syria, etc, because we couldn't. Almost as soon as "Mission Accomplished", Iraq began to deteriorate.

I would have a speck of respect for Powell had he not gone in front of the UN and the world telling stories he had to know were plain old lies. He added credibility to their (neocons) entire agenda which he could have it taken away by walking away, or even better - by speaking the truth until they fired him.

I can forgive a deludiniod like the neocons more easily than I can forgive someone who absolutely knew better but went along to get along. Fuck Colin Powell.

[classof56]

28. Welcome to DU!

Glad to have you aboard. Let's DEFEAT BUSH!!

[writes2000]

39. Thanks. I Want Bush To Lose So Badly, I Can Taste It.

[SammyWinstonJack]

47. We all do!

Welcome to DU! :hi:

[Carla in Ca]

64. And isn't the timing of this imteresting

I think it is a pay back to * and the whole administration. He was leaving anyway.

And, welcome to DU!:hi:

[SoCal]

2. It's in Newsweek too

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6370525/site/newsweek /

But the truth is, neither party is fully reckoning with the reality of Iraq—which is that the insurgents, by most accounts, are winning. Even Secretary of State Colin Powell, a former general who stays in touch with the Joint Chiefs, has acknowledged this privately to friends in recent weeks, NEWSWEEK has learned. The insurgents have effectively created a reign of terror throughout the country, killing thousands, driving Iraqi elites and technocrats into exile and scaring foreigners out. "Things are getting really bad," a senior Iraqi official in interim Prime Minister Ayad Allawi's government told NEWSWEEK last week. "The initiative is in hands right now. This approach of being lenient and accommodating has really backfired. They see this as weakness."

A year ago the insurgents were relegated to sabotaging power and gas lines hundreds of miles outside Baghdad. Today they are moving into once safe neighborhoods in the heart of the capital, choking off what remains of "normal" Iraqi society like a creeping jungle. And they are increasingly brazen. At one point in Ramadi last week, while U.S. soldiers were negotiating with the mayor (who declared himself governor after the appointed governor fled), two insurgents rode by shooting AK-47s—from bicycles. Now even Baghdad's Green Zone, the four-square-mile U.S. compound cordoned off by blast walls and barbed wire, is under nearly daily assault by gunmen, mortars and even suicide bombers."
-----

Is there some way this could backlash against us? Otherwise Powell might've given us his own October surprise.

[tuvor]

13. Not so sure we can actually use this.

The article claims that "neither party is fully reckoning...that the insurgents...are winning."

[blondeatlast]

35. But--DEMS ARE NOT IN POWER, not in the Adminstration,

House, or Senate.

Hell, yes, we can use this...

[lanparty]

48. Iraqnam ...

This is Iraqnam, the sequel to Vietnam!!! It's not a winnable scenario. Our only hope is to get the hell out ASAP and save American lives.

[drdtroit]

57. "neither party is fully reckoning with the reality of Iraq"

Last I checked we had a Republican (p)Resident, Senate and House (plus the Supreme Court for good measure).
It leaves one wondering how the Democrats could effect policy and deal with the reality?
Ridicuolous!

[BattyDem]

3. A message to Colin Powell ...

NO SHIT! :eyes:


On edit: I just caught this line:
If the Fallujah offensive fails, Newsweek grimly predicts, "then the American president will find himself in a deepening quagmire on Inauguration Day."

So ... will that be Bush's parting gift to Kerry?

[Mojambo]

4. If a Democrat had said this they'd be labeled a traitor. n/t

[mzmolly]

5. Woah! BLAST THIS SUCKA!!!!!

:toast:

[Bernardo de La Paz]

24. I dont think beer mugs are appropriate celebration for the deaths coming.

[mzmolly]

33. The "Beer mugs" were for the fact that the truth is coming out.

So, you can save the self rightous bullshit.

[saigon68]

36. kick

[lanparty]

51. It's just like your X-Box ...

... you start fighting with nothing. Than you get your Body Armor as you go along!!!

[charlyvi]

6. No Shit Sherlock.

And where were you, Mr. Powell, when shrub* cherry picked intelligence to ram us into this war? Huh? I have lost all respect for you.

[TrustingDog]

9. will always see him schlocking lies at the the UNSC...

he must have had a lot of sleepness nights over that one, but he buckled anyway.

[leeroysphitz]

26. I served under Powell in the first gulf war.

As far as I'm concerned Powell betrayed our soldiers and sold them out to this "presidents" criminal, Godless agenda. He has ZERO credibility and I have ZERO respect for him. Fucking Judas.

[classof56]

29. Good to hear this from you. And welcome to DU! n/t

[cubsfan forever]

44. Bless you for an American hero!

And welcome to DU!

Professor 2

[leeroysphitz]

46. Aww Shucks n/t

[cubsfan forever]

43. Hear, hear!

I, too, lost all respect for Mr. Powell when he went along with the incredibly stupid and obvious lies that led to the horribly wrong war in Iraq.

Professor 2

[shelley806]

7. Colin Powell has American and Iraqi blood on his hands...

Little late in the game don't you think for him to be honest? "I serve at the pleasure of"

No sympathy from me.

[deadparrot]

8. It took him HOW long to realize this?

Geez, Colin, I used to have respect for you.

[cynatnite]

10. same here

his credibility is shot to hell. I thought maybe a reasonable voice in bush's circle might help, but I was wrong.

[Bluebear]

12. Any Dem saying this would be "giving aid & comfort" blah blah blah

Frigging double standards. Every Republican lawmaker would be on the steps of the Capitol fairly screaming how XX's comments are "outrageous, unpatriotic, troops in 'harm's way', at a time like this, liberal etc etc etc."

Am I right?

[Moonbeam_Starlight]

17. EXACTLY damn right

as usual, plastic. You are 100% correct, those hypocrites.

[Radio-Active]

18. Yep, I was about to post

about the same thing

[SammyWinstonJack]

52. You are right!

Think John Kerry and what they did/are trying to do to him because he spoke out against the VN war.

[Downtown Hound]

14. Sounds like a flip flopper

Hasn't he been saying for months that we're winning?

[Malva Zebrina]

15. Here ya go all you UN guys--see nice drawings of all this WMD

and see this little vial of white baby powder--we certainly do need to get into Iraq as soon as possible before a nuke is aimed at NYC or Chicago by Saddam.

later: Stabs his own military, or perhaps even Bush, in the back. We lost. I can spell it all out for you why we lost folks--see how smart and sensible I am. I have perfected the talk, so it looks as though I am really sensible and smart.

This guy has lived his life this way--he is as much without honor as any of the Bush regime that began this war on lies.

[Moonbeam_Starlight]

16. Powell? I've got a question.

How do you sleep at night?

Seriously. How?

[ewagner]

19. In one of my first posts

on DU...I made reference to the strange order of things in Iraq in that the Pentagon NOT State Department was running post-invasion Iraq.

Powell let himself be run over by the Neocons and now ther is LITERALLY Hell to Pay for it.

[Deja Q]

20. So we're losing that war. Does that mean * is wrong and/or can't do it?

He IS the Commander in Chief.

[PearliePoo2]

21. watch your back now, Colin

Powell is in "no-man's land now. He sold out when he did his power point presentation at the UN, even remarking at one point the night before "I can't read this shit" and throwing some talking points on the floor. But, they (cheney)got to him anyway. He was then ostracized from the cliche, on the outside looking in. His popularity was still enormous with the populace, maybe that's why he wasn't asked for his resignation. If he had any balls, he would have said "enough" and outed them for the liars they are. Now, no one respects him and he just burned a major bridge with the Neocons by saying we are losing. The truth a little too late. What an asshole.
He deserves to squirm for having no integrity.

[shelley806]

38. I love your name, welcome to DU, and I agree with your post

[Karenina]

50. Love your screen name...

It will take two Johns to get it done. Powell has ONE DAY to get REAL. I have NO expectation he'll do so as his hands also drip the "other's" blood. First of all, this is not a WAR, it's an ILLEGAL INVASION conducted on the basis of WHAT HE KNEW were LIES, LIES, LIES. I read some tripe on LBN of his comments on the "illegitimacy of the insurgents." What a used condom he is. He has ONE DAY to redeem himself.

[arewenotdemo]

59. "Used condom" is right

Powell's obviously smarter than the rest of these fools, but brains won't save you when you sleep with Nazis.

[lanparty]

53. If he had integrity ...

If Powell had any integrity, he would endorse Kerry in spite of his Boss' incompetence on the eve of the election!!!

We already know Powell won't serve again if Bush is re-elected. He's trying to save our asses in spite of his ignorant boss!!! He doesn't have enough ball to break with the Republicans even though he knows they're incompetent!!!!

[prof_science]

23. Am I wrong

to feel that the timing of this is, on the part of Powell, a tacit non-endorsement of the Bush administration? Or, is this an election eve ploy by the "liberal media?" Or, will it be argued both ways? Probably.

Still. amazing stuff.

[shelley806]

42. How would the media be served by it?

Just interest and increased ratings? Because most media that I see is pro-Bush.

Maybe it is tacit non-endorsement of BushCo., but as I said above--Too late, Mr. Powell. You serve at the pleasure of a criminal, and blood is on your hands equally. You break a dish in the Pottery Barn, and it's not just those you are serving whose fault it is. It is yours.

1,100 plus troops dead
100,000 Iraqis civilians dead

No sympathy from me Powell. No honor from me.

BTW: Welcome to DU.
What area of science?

[prof_science]

61. I agree.

Yes, pro-Bush media. I agree. When I said "liberal media", I was using that phrase as would someone from "Faux News."

And I think you are right on concerning your views of Powell. He's a criminal just as much as the rest of them. It's disgusting that he seems to be trying to wash his hands of the responsibility.

Sorry, my name is a bit misleading-- I'm not a professor, but a grad student in science (genetics). The "prof_" prefix comes from my old days as a gamer, I was in the "prof_" counterstrike clan :)

[nookiemonster]

25. Mr. Powell, if you have any kind of love for your country

EXPOSE THIS TREASON NOW!!

It's all you got left man.

[bogey18]

27. One of the things that has puzzled me since the start of

the Iraq war is why Colin Powell sold out and pitched a war he didn't believe in to the United Nations, then stayed silent through all of the bumbling and fumbling. Is he dumb? Or is he, as most of my friends imply, just a "good soldier"?

I think his behavior is one of the more troubling aspects of the whole debacle.

[shelley806]

45. He is a moral coward.

And possibly greedy to boot. Who knows how these war profiteering bandits are going to make out? One need only look at Halliburton and subsidiaries and assume....

[PerfectSage]

30. So Powell has finally figured out: Iraq = Quagmire

Has he figured out Bushco & the neocons = the inept leadership of the old Soviet Union and, Iraq is becoming to America what Afghanistan was to the USSR? IE, the quagmire that brings down a superpower.

B/C No Mo' Years :party::toast:

[Jacobin]

31. Tell us something we don't know, Colin.

Colin Powell, Master of the Obvious Statement.

woo hoo

[Chomskyite]

32. Yet another headline that kills Bush

But I dont like reading this stuff. No question things are very bleak for our country right now and for the world. Kerry will have to start work the second he wakes up Nov. 3.

He'll need to convene as many of the best minds as he can and he'll have to get a lot of the Bush insiders to come out and be honest with him about what's going on. I see the need for something like the series of "Wise Men" meetings LBJ had take place just before deciding to start the peace talks in 68.

[02645]

34. THINGS ARE NOT GOING WELL IN IRAQ AND THE BIG PICTURE OF BUSH'S RECORD

ELECTION IS HERE: TIME TO BOTTOM LINE IT

This election is a referendum on Bush. If heÕs bad, then itÕs time to give the new guy Kerry a chance. If not, then let Bush have four more years.

KEY AREAS OF BUSH RECORD ON A SCALE OF 1 TO 10

BUSH RECORD ON TERRORISM Ð 2 OUT OF 10

* BIN LADEN ON THE LOOSE. Why the heck has public enemy number one still not been caught after over three years since 9/11/2001??? The reason is Bush took his eye off the ball and invaded Iraq before finishing the job of catching bin Laden. To the point, by March 13, 2002 Bush said, according to an official White House transcript "I'll repeat what I said. I truly am not that concerned about him.Ó Now the President says he wants bin Laden dead or alive. This is a huge FLIP FLOP on one of the most important issues facing our country.

* TERRORISM ON THE RISE. Never before have so many US and foreign troops and citizens died from terrorist attacks in Iraq and elsewhere. And the numbers are increasing. Bush hasnÕt focused our military resources in the relentless push that is needed to completely dismantle al Qaeda. Neither has Bush adequately funded the Homeland Security Office, which lets 95% of shipping containers come into the US uninspected. As a consequence, now the President admits itÕs not a matter of if the next terrorist attack will occur against the US, but when. BOTTOM LINE: BAD JOB FOR BUSH.

BUSH RECORD ON IRAQ Ð 1 OUT OF 10

* IRAQ WAS A MISTAKE. The reason Bush rushed us into war Ð that Iraq supposedly has weapons of mass destruction Ð was all wrong. Major major major mistake. For that kind of mistake, the buck has got to stop with the President.

* IRAQ IS A MESS THAT IS NOT BEING CLEANED UP. Iraqis canÕt travel safely in their own streets. Iraqis avoid being near foreigners because of the risk of attack. Whole sections of Iraq are lawless war zones. Terrorism is increasing each month. Infrastructure is still in shambles. Why is the Iraq situation declining from bad to worse? The reason is we never had a decent plan to secure the peace in that country. Another bad mistake.

* WE TORTURED INNOCENT IRAQIS. We disgraced ourselves. Bush says we are bringing Democracy to Iraq. Then we round up innocent people without adequate proof of wrongdoing, nearly all of whom have since been released, and subject them to bizarre torture aimed at violating their deepest religious mores. Sadly, this is not surprising since Bush has said we are not following the Geneva Convention, which protects our troops and citizens from outrageous conduct such as beheadings. Instead, in doublespeak, BushÕs administration said we are following Òthe principles ofÓ the Geneva Convention. Even more shocking, no senior administration official such as Rumsfeld has been shown the door.

* DID WE INVADE THE RIGHT COUNTRY? At the same time we were invading Iraq, North Korea already had nuclear weapons and was building more. Iran was busily obtaining nuclear weapons. LotÕs of people are asking if we invaded the right country. Was Iraq really that urgent? Should we have gone into Iran or North Korea? Or nowhere! BOTTOM LINE: BAD CHOICES, BAD JOB FOR BUSH.

BUSH RECORD ON THE ECONOMY: 3 OUT OF 10

* THE TAX CUT FAILED. Nice tax cut for the rich but it didnÕt much help the rest of middle America, who lost a lot of jobs and faced skyrocketing costs of living in health care, education and fuel costs. For the first time since Herbert HooverÕs administration, we lost more jobs than we created. Net net by all accounts more than a million jobs are gone over the past four years. Even over the past several months during the so-called ÒrecoveryÓ, job growth canÕt keep up with population growth. Government deficits are out of control and we will be paying for them for years to come.

* TOO MANY AMERICANS ARE STRUGGLING. How are Americans getting by with skyrocketing health care, education and fuel costs? Not with much help from the government. Tax cuts of only a few hundred dollars a year for middle income Americans canÕt make up for the squeeze from these costs. ThereÕs no direct help in the fuel area and limited help in the education area. The federal drug program is limited to seniors and is very hard to understand. This is really a drop in the bucket compared to BushÕs failure to make good on his promise to let everyone buy drugs from Canada. The PresidentÕs broken promise demonstrates that he holds the interests of big drug companies above those of the public. Prescription drugs sold in Canada are largely the same pills sold here. Whole communities have been forced to break the law by sponsoring bus trips to Canada to avoid their elderly and sick from becoming impoverished from the astronomical cost of drugs in the US.

BUSH ON SOCIAL ISSUES: 5 OUT OF 10

* THE PRESIDENT HAS HELD THE LINE BUT IS DIVISIVE. Social issues are what is keeping the President afloat. The country is divided down the middle on social issues. There are reasonable arguments as well as misinformation on both sides of the aisle. ItÕs a shame Bush couldnÕt build more unity, but you canÕt blame him entirely for people being put off by his folksy swagger persona.

* OUT OF TOUCH ON STEM CELL RESEARCH. In a recent Annenberg poll in August, 64% favored and 28% disfavored use of embryos to conduct stem cell research. In the abortion debate, itÕs a real live fetus lost on the one hand versus no health benefit for the mother. The stem cell debate balances a tiny embryo against health gains for millions of sick people. Bush says he is permitting stem cell research, but according to stem cell researchers, he really isnÕt. There are only a few old and sick cell lines that can be used. Meanwhile, hundreds of thousands of embryos are frozen only to be ultimately discarded because itÕs against the law to use them for stem cell research. If Bush gets elected, cures from stem cell research for millions of sick people are at least four more years away, and the US could lose the edge in this promising and potentially profitable field of research.

BOTTOM LINE: BushÕs record (average of 3.7 out of 10) is weak. Time to give the new guy a chance. Kerry proved himself capable and BushÕs match during the debates. Many of the people hollering about Kerry should remember all the similar hollering about Clinton, who turned out to do a pretty good job for America. No big wars on ClintonÕs watch. A great economy. At least four terrorist attacks averted by the Clinton administration through hard work leading up to the turn of the millennium, whereas the Bush administration ignored similar signs leading up to 9/11. Maybe thatÕs why bin Laden was so surprised that 9/11 exceeded all his expectations in running flawlessly.

[opihimoimoi]

40. When is America going to realize Diplomacy/Statesmanship,/

Astuteness, etc don't come down the pike with Generals and Amateurs.

Powell was put in there not to run a war but to do the fence mending. Too Late, its too late ... shoulda, woulda, coulda... but went with Rummy instead. Now its one big mess and no one wants the Blame.

Bwahahahahahaha...

Come, we go Biggie's...prime ribs and free beer.

[usregimechange]

41. kick, nt

[AusTexDem]

49. What would you think if Kerry asked Powell to stay on as SOS?

Who do you think would be a good Sec. of state?

[Tsiyu]

56. There is a lesson and warning here

for neo-cons. When you try to train an army to fight against its own people, it's like asking a mother to kill her own children.

If they plan on trying that tactic in the US, they will be met with the same scenario. This was an unjust war, and the blood of 100,000+ Iraqis is on Powell's hands as well as every American's.

But at least Osama is safe. The Shrub can keep one man secure. That ought to thrill the security moms, eh?

[bread_and_roses]

62. Morally bankrupt child killer

CHILD KILLER, Mr. Powell, how do you sleep, how do you face yourself in the mirror. No redemption, none, you murderous bastard, may you forever be haunted along with the rest of the murdering cabal by the screams and terror of the children you burned and blew to bits and the endless grief of their parents.

[hangemhigh]

63. Gutless fucking wonder. n/t:puke:

[psychopomp]

65. 3 months of

careful massaging of his crushed gonads must have been required to get him to say the simple truth about this Iraq war.

[jacksonian]

66. Isn't this shocking? that the SOS publically declared the war a failure

in direct opposition to the President's stance on the eve of the election?

[ohtransplant]

67. I used to respect General Colin Powell

and I couldn't believe he buckled like a collapsible squirrel gun in March 2003.

He folded so completely, it made me think they must have something pretty big on this guy. Still I don't know how he can look at himself to shave each day.

If he has any shred of courage or self respect left, he should resign and go to the media himself tomorrow. I know it won't happen as most of "*"'s associates and former associates live in fear of the right wing attack machine manned by Karl Rove et al.

Best of luck to all DUers who will be spending most of the next two days in the trenches. God Bless America.

Never give up. Never, Never give up. - Churchill

[boyedav]

68. This needs national attention

A member of the Bush administration basically saying that Kerry's interpretation of the situation is closer to the truth than Smirk's?

What are the things we can do to make this the media buzz on Monday?

[JSJ]

69. the 'house negro' wants a job with kerry- indict him, instead, john

[Supersedeas]

72. has any of the major Networks picked this up yet????