Who Can End the Iraq War?

To the roughly 80% of Americans who think this country is going in the wrong direction, a Democratic candidate is the only answer. Senators Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama promise to get troops out of Iraq. John McBush, forget about it. He said it's alright for troops to stay in Iraq for one hundred years (and yes, he did say that). The George Bush abhorrence is in its seventh year. And we keep on drowning further towards the bottom of the ocean.

Despite the fall of Saddam Hussein and instating a "democracy" in Iraq, they are no closer to developing a full-functioning democracy capable of providing its own security than it was five years ago. The United States of America is no safer than it was five years ago. General David Petraeus and Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker affirm that Iraq is in a fragile state and genocide could occur (it isn't going on now?) if the U.S. leaves.

Former Secretary of State Colin Powell has said that the next President will have the face the actuality that the U.S. must withdraw troops from Iraq and Afghanistan. Powell, however, added that, "None of them are going to have the flexibility of just saying we’re out of here, turn off the switch, turn off the lights, we’re leaving. They will have a situation before them."

Yesterday, Clinton asserted that she is the only candidate who can end the War in Iraq. She said that Obama only says he'll end the War, and continued to pound McBush on his "100-year" remark.

I have a problem with Hillary. For her to say that Obama only says he is going to end the War carries no weight. She voted to authorize the War in Iraq while Obama went on record saying this War was a bad idea. Like helping get NAFTA approved, Clinton faces trouble with voters who believe that leadership is about action, not what a candidate says now about his or her state of mind.

It's not as if Obama simply says he is going to withdraw troops without regard to anything that happens on the ground. He has a stable, concrete plan. Obama will keep some troops in Iraq to protect our embassy and diplomats, and will carry out al Qaeda attempts to build a base in Iraq. The U.S. has gotten rid of Iraq's ruthless dictator. Now it's time for the Iraqis to take responsibility. The best way to ensure that happens is to say that we are leaving. The United Nations will play a central role in developing a new convention to seek a new accord to Iraq's governance and Constitution.

Obama has also said that we will launch a diplomatic effort in Iraq to focus on securing Iraq's borders, keep neighboring countries such as Syria and Iran from meddling inside Iraq, support reconciliation among sectarian groups, and provide financial support to Iraq's reconstruction.

Of course, this is easier said than done. And things could change Obama's plan. However, I do not understand why Hillary Clinton should be trusted more to get out of Iraq than Barack Obama. Iraq has problems of their own and I am not an isolationist, but we simply have to take care of our home-front now. The economy is sluggish, the dollar is flat-lining, thousands have lost their homes, and citizens are forced in a tight financial corner. We can't afford to waste billions upon billions of dollars in Iraq.