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Back to Story - Help Sleepless in Washington: Senate pulls Iraq 'all-nighter' by Stephen Collinson 22 minutes ago
With candlelight vigils, portable cots, and attacks on President George W. Bush, Democrats were Tuesday forcing Republicans into a rare all-night Senate debate to defend US Iraq strategy.
"The Senate spending a sleepness night is no great sacrifice, soldiers and their families who pray for them spend many sleepless nights," said Dick Durbin, the number two Democrat in the Senate.
Staffers rustled up hot food and cots, so weary Senators could nap in a room just outside the chamber, as Democrats choreographed a bid to force through a plan to get most US combat troops home from Iraq by the end of April.
But despite help from several Republican rebels, they seemed certain to fall short of the 60-vote super-majority in the 100-member chamber needed to thwart Republican blocking tactics.
"Republicans will need to choose whether they want to protect the president or protect our troops," said Senate Majority leader Harry Reid, later to join other party grandees at a candlelight demonstration on Capitol Hill.
But his Republican opposite number, Senator Mitch McConnell, accused Democrats of pulling off a political stunt.
"We are going to be subjected to theater and bad theater at that, (but) if they want to debate all night, we will be here," McConnell said.
White House spokesman Tony Snow portrayed the all-night session as a sideshow, and urged Democrats to pass legislation funding US armed forces.
"It's always good to have a healthy debate. On the other hand, it is a debate in pursuit of what?"
Bush has warned he will make no decisions on any change in strategy in Iraq until US commander General David Petraeus returns to Washington in September to report on the current plan to surge an extra 30,000 troops into the country,
Democrats say only the threat of withdrawal will force Iraq's government to embrace political reconciliation, after it was shown to have made meager progress by a new US report last week.
"It is that open ended commitment that must end if we are going to prod the Iraqi people to finally step up, stare into the abyss and answer the question -- do they want a civil war or do they want a nation?" said powerful Democratic Senator Carl Levin.
"What we have is a glass called Iraq that has a hole in the bottom, and whatever we put into Iraq, goes right through that hole."
Durbin said Iraq was already in chaos and that American troops who have lost 3,616 comrades, did not have the power to end violence that has also killed at least tens of thousands of civilians.
"The future of Iraq is in the hands of Iraqis, they have to stand up and decide the fate of their own country," he said.
Republican Senator Olympia Snowe, who broke with Bush last week, said the Iraqi government was guilty of "serial intransigence" and it was time for Bush to face "reality."
But Bush's backers said withdrawal would leave Iraq as a haven for Al-Qaeda and embolden US foe Iran.
"What are we going to do if withdrawal results in chaos and genocide? I would like to hear that question asked a little more often," said Republican Senator and 2008 presidential candidate John McCain.
Senator Joseph Lieberman, a long-time Democrat who split with this own party on the war and now sits as an independent, said the surge should not be abandoned.
"The sad truth is that too many of our colleagues in the chamber are already asleep when it comes to Iraq ... they're already asleep about the consequences of an American defeat in Iraq for our national security."
Iraq's ambassador to the United States Samir Sumaidaie meanwhile said US lawmakers should give the surge more time.
"I think September frankly is too soon to show anything more than an inkling of its potential," the ambassador told reporters, referring to a hotly anticipated review due in two months from US commanders in Iraq.
"The tragedy would be after four years of learning and making mistakes, just as we are getting to grips with the situation ... that the rug would be pulled from under their feet," he said.
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"But Bush's backers said withdrawal would leave Iraq as a haven for Al-Qaeda and embolden US foe Iran."
A whole lot of us tried to tell those jake-legged idiots that the eventual end of going into Iraq would be to "leave Iraq as a haven for Al-Qaeda and embolden US foe(s in) Iran (and elsewhere)" in the first place.
But did they pay attention? Noooope, just like now, they are too stupid and self centered to be honest.
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In case you haven't heard the conclusions of the latest and most extensive "war game" out of the Pentagon, the conclusion is that withdrawal immediately from Iraq will undermine the Iranian efforts there, will destroy any hope Al Qaeda has at taking control of Iraq, and delaying pulling our troops from Iraq will prevent or delay each of those occurances.
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here you go urn: Exit Strategies Would Iran Take Over Iraq? Would Al-Qaeda? The Debate About How and When to Leave Centers on What Might Happen After the U.S. Goes.
By Karen DeYoung and Thomas E. Ricks Washington Post Staff Writers Tuesday, July 17, 2007; Page A01
If U.S. combat forces withdraw from Iraq in the near future, three developments would be likely to unfold. Majority Shiites would drive Sunnis out of ethnically mixed areas west to Anbar province. Southern Iraq would erupt in civil war between Shiite groups. And the Kurdish north would solidify its borders and invite a U.S. troop presence there. In short, Iraq would effectively become three separate nations.
That was the conclusion reached in recent "war games" exercises conducted for the U.S. military by retired Marine Col. Gary Anderson. "I honestly don't think it will be apocalyptic," said Anderson, who has served in Iraq and now works for a major defense contractor. But "it will be u http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/07/16/AR2007071601680. html
when are you "bush worshippers" going to realise we are fightiung smoke and mirrors and the only thing we are accomplishing is spending 2.5 BILLION a week on "friends of Bush"?
our military is the best in the world, and we are allowing an idjit to waste it and possibly ruin it...
alqueda Iraq is a franchise outfit that is actually getting money FROM US, and from our enemies BECAUSE we are there throwing cahs around, and our enemies WANT US there...
i never thought i'd see so much ignorance in my whole life as we have seen since Bush decided to invade iraq..
it appears to me that if i wanted to make a global war on terror actually happen? i would have done exaclty what Bush has done...
al-queda is measured in the thousands of members, not tens of thousands, and the groups are splintered and fractious, most of the terrorists are al-queda in NAME ONLY because it's good for recruiting and fund-raising...
if you really want to get rid of alqueda? offer gold bullion in Pakistan.. NOT CASH$$
set up a small fort Knox on the Afghan side of the border where we are legit, and actually show those guys the gold bars like in a display window (with armed guards).. they don't care how much cash we give them...
gold? they'll kill osama for it.. and bring in his head...
"losing in Iraq will bring the terrorists here? that's like the "big bad wolf" stories they told children: do you know many documented cases of humans being attacked by healthy wolves there are worldwide? more people have died of beestings...
they can come here RIGHT NOW if th3ey want to anyway... i've never heard such idiaocy as they'll be coming her next if we leave...
of course we can't leave anyway, cuz Iraq is defenseless, cuz we can't arm them properly, cuz they'd use it on US if we did...
-------------------- Don't envy the happiness of those who live in a fool's paradise.
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quote:Originally posted by glassman: here you go urn:
when are you "bush worshippers" going to realise we are fightiung smoke and mirrors and the only thing we are accomplishing is spending 2.5 BILLION a week on "friends of Bush"?
our military is the best in the world, and we are allowing an idjit to waste it and possibly ruin it...
alqueda Iraq is a franchise outfit that is actually getting money FROM US, and from our enemies BECAUSE we are there throwing cahs around, and our enemies WANT US there...
i never thought i'd see so much ignorance in my whole life as we have seen since Bush decided to invade iraq..
it appears to me that if i wanted to make a global war on terror actually happen? i would have done exaclty what Bush has done...
al-queda is measured in the thousands of members, not tens of thousands, and the groups are splintered and fractious, most of the terrorists are al-queda in NAME ONLY because it's good for recruiting and fund-raising...
if you really want to get rid of alqueda? offer gold bullion in Pakistan.. NOT CASH$$
set up a small fort Knox on the Afghan side of the border where we are legit, and actually show those guys the gold bars like in a display window (with armed guards).. they don't care how much cash we give them...
gold? they'll kill osama for it.. and bring in his head...
"losing in Iraq will bring the terrorists here? that's like the "big bad wolf" stories they told children: do you know many documented cases of humans being attacked by healthy wolves there are worldwide? more people have died of beestings...
they can come here RIGHT NOW if th3ey want to anyway... i've never heard such idiaocy as they'll be coming her next if we leave...
of course we can't leave anyway, cuz Iraq is defenseless, cuz we can't arm them properly, cuz they'd use it on US if we did...
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