Army chief: US ready to be in Iraq 10 years - Despite what Obama says

[NNN0LHI]

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_US_IRAQ?SITE=ILKAN&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

May 27, 12:31 AM EDT

Army chief: US ready to be in Iraq 10 years

By TOM CURLEY
Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Pentagon is prepared to leave fighting forces in Iraq for as long as a decade despite an agreement between the United States and Iraq that would bring all American troops home by 2012, the top U.S. Army officer said Tuesday.

Gen. George Casey, the Army chief of staff, said the world remains dangerous and unpredictable, and the Pentagon must plan for extended U.S. combat and stability operations in two wars. "Global trends are pushing in the wrong direction," Casey said. "They fundamentally will change how the Army works."

He spoke at an invitation-only briefing to a dozen journalists and policy analysts from Washington-based think-tanks. He said his planning envisions combat troops in Iraq and Afghanistan for a decade as part of a sustained U.S. commitment to fighting extremism and terrorism in the Middle East.

Casey's calculations about force levels are related to his attempt to ease the brutal deployment calendar that he said would "bring the Army to its knees."

[Thrill]

1. Looks like another one Obama needs to Axe

[elleng]

2. Where does 'despite what Obama says' come from?

I see nothing inconsistent with the 2 statements; armed services will be ready to do whatever is necessary, because THAT'S THEIR JOB. President hopes such won't be necessary.

[NNN0LHI]

4. Well Obama said he was going to pull one or two brigades out per month before he took office

How many has he pulled out so far?

Don

[sandnsea]

7. Well here's one in March

http://www.army.mil/-news/2009/03/16/18322-community-welcomes-stryker-brigades-return-from-iraq/

And some more...
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&safe=off&q=brigade+returns+from+Iraq&btnG=Search&aq=f&oq=&aqi=

You kind of have to actually *want* to find some good news, or you never will. You sure won't find it at DU.

[telmerc]

11. Not exactly

I am in the Stryker Brigade in Hawaii. We came home a few weeks early, but we were replaced by another Stryker Brigade, the 56th from the Pennsylvania National Guard.

http://www.mnf-iraq.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=25941&Itemid=21

And we are going back next year, to replace another Brigade.

http://www.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/20090526/BREAKING/90526051


I know it is my first post but I voted for Obama with high hopes that we would leave Iraq, but talking to my friends in other brigades and looking at the deployment schedule for 2010 it is all smoke and mirrors concerning the withdrawal of troops from Iraq. I am moving from reverent Obama supporter to lukewarm to leaning towards being on the fence.

[sandnsea]

12. That's unfortunate, but there are others

that have been deployed out of Iraq. I wish it was faster too, but the fact is, it is happening.

http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/library/news/2009/03/mil-090308-mnfi01.htm

[EFerrari]

13. Welcome to DU, telmerc.

We're just going to have to keep working on being very persuasive. :)

[merh]

3. I wonder how the commander in chief will handle

the news of his Army commander's revelations?

[EFerrari]

5. Casey likes to shoot his mouth off. Look at this from his wiki entry:

In 2005, General Casey was hopeful that the December 2005 Iraqi elections could lead to a more unified and moderate Iraq which—in conjunction with the training of Iraqi security forces—could pave the way for U.S. troop reductions in early 2006. In August 2005, Casey used specific troop numbers in his public discussion of a possible drawdown. He said the then current troop level of 138,000 could be reduced by 30,000 in the early months of 2006 as Iraqi security forces took on a greater role. President Bush publicly called the talk "speculation" and rebuked the general.

[merh]

6. WTF?

General Casey needs a good talking to.

[Political Heretic]

8. Dupe:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=5726969&mesg_id=5726969

[proteus_lives]

9. What's better for Iraq?

If American forces leave right away?

Or

A slow and steady withdrawal?

I'm honestly not sure.

[ConsAreLiars]

10. One lesson from Vietnam is that the invaders will have to be driven out.

Obama's fantasies that he, as president, can be anything other than a pawn of the transnationalist corporatist empire builders are endearing, but proving, probably even to him, impossible. He got a pass and some support from big momey and big media only because he argued that devoting more money and blood into establishing military domination and control over Afghanistan was geopolitically smarter and more effective in positioning the US military against Russia and China.

Hegemony is the game. Obama is the new name.

[Lasher]

14. Obama promised during the campaign that combat soldiers would be out in 16 months.

That would have been by May 20, 2010. But in February, just 5 weeks after taking office, he broke that promise, changing the 16 month timeline to 19 months. A sizable residual U.S. force of 35,000 to 50,000 U.S. troops will stay in Iraq after that. These are to be 'non-combat' solders, you see.

These 'non-combat' soldiers are to remain in Iraq as long as the end of 2012, pursuant to an 11th hour agreement that GWB entered into with the Iraqis. I wonder if any of the Bush administration neocons were aware at the time that this would keep US soldiers in Iraq until the end of Obama's first term.

Now that 3 months have gone by since Obama announced his new timeline, let's see how we're doing with getting the combat soldiers out by August 31, 2010. At the end of February this year we had 140,000 soldiers in Iraq (scroll to the bottom of page 24). If 50,000 of them are to remain until the end of 2012, that leaves 90,000 combat soldiers that are to be out in 19 months. That's an average overall troop reduction of 4,737 per month.

At the end of this month the US troop level will be 134,000. That's a reduction of 6,000 in 3 months, less than half the 14,211 quarterly average needed to meet the deadline. Now maybe I'm being overly skeptical and maybe I should just trust Obama to keep his word. But he used all that up on his first broken promise to get the soldiers out. And it looks like he's not going to keep this new promise either.