Article

2003-04-25 Iraq

Garner pledges a new Baghdad government within days

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Posted by Steve White 2003-04-25 01:46 am|| || Front Page|| [3 views since 2007-05-07] Top

#1 If Ronnie Reagan was in power, there would be no Iraqi government until a secular constitution was in place, and Islamofascist agitators were either in jail or in the bellies of vultures. Before Iraq can be de-Baathed and de-Islamofascized, the "faith based" White House needs to be de-Bushed. Norquist/Bush have already delivered Pakistan and Turkey to the Islamofascists. Before the "faith based" State Department delivers Iraq to Iran's Mullahs, Yemen is next on the list. Yeech!

http://ipsnews.net/interna.asp?idnews=17766

Posted by Anonon 2003-04-25 02:30:27|| 2003-04-25 02:30:27|| Front Page Top

#2 The preceding was brought to you by a shocked and awed memeber of the left, who still can't bring themselves to believe Bush is an adult and is fully in charge.

Pathetic.

Posted by badanov 2003-04-25 02:54:53|| [www.rkka.org] 2003-04-25 02:54:53|| Front Page Top

#3 Letting some of the shites (I love how the word looks typed out) run some municipalities for a few months is a truly great idea. The more the people experience shite govt. before they vote the less likely they will vote in a shite govt. By the way, the people of Iran have voted out their shite govt several times. Unfortunately, the mullahs have a shite constitution.

Posted by mhw 2003-04-25 07:37:23|| 2003-04-25 07:37:23|| Front Page Top

#4 From this AM's WaPo - good news and bad news

Good news - Mosul quiets down, ex-army officers there cooperating with Americans.
Bad news - report that SCIRI cleric running Kut has local support.
mixed news - US relations with self-proclaimed governor of Baghdad still cool. Garner playing this one well, I think. "if people of Baghdad want him out, we'll remove him" Doesnt confirm his position, but doesnt rule out working with him if he has real support.

Chalabi - first lets not personalize it so much. INC is more than Chalabi, I hope. And I dont think we want Chalabi running around inspiring people. We want locals to run local affairs - as they are even in the cleric controlled cities. The question is who do the locals look to for coordination and leadership at a higher level - and even then it need not be Chalabi, but he can serve as an alternative for some, and dilute influence of those we dont like. Not at all clear that even the "Hawza" is united. Anti-US statement the other day from a cleric there seemed to contradict position of top guy Ayatollah Sistani.

Shiites cant possibly implement Iran style government - certainly not democracticaly, and probably not by force. theyre only 60% or so of the population. An Iran style system would have the opposition of the non-Shia 40%, relatively secularist Shiites, and any clerics who feared being left out of the ruling clique. Alternative strategy for SCIRI would be compromise with anti-US Sunni mullahs in Baghdad - but that would probably alienate much of Shia population. More likely is acceptance of some broader govt. But the more they can grab now the more leverage they (and Iran) have.

Note also - the more SCIRI plays hard to get - the more pressure there is on the US to get UNSC support for legitimacy - which increases the leverage of France at the UNSC. Du Villepin's visit to Teheran wasnt simply a matter of French attraction to dictators - it was a question of coordinating pressure on the US position in Iraq.

Posted by liberalhawk 2003-04-25 08:42:30|| 2003-04-25 08:42:30|| Front Page Top

#5 Hitchens on Chalabi (and Iraqi communists, etc)

http://slate.msn.com/id/2081968/

Posted by liberalhawk 2003-04-25 09:31:18|| 2003-04-25 09:31:18|| Front Page Top

#6 Badanov:
Reaganites as "leftists"? Bush Jr as man of principle? Junior pocketed $6,000,000 in unearned cash after the sale of the Texas Rangers. He took $2,500,000 in loot from his failed "Arbusto Oil" venture. Then he grabbed $1,500,000 in booty for dry oil wells in the United Arab Emirates. His prostrate support for the Wahabi entity, which funds the terrorist groups that Americans pay billions to fight, will deliver him untold post-regime millions. His Vice President positioned himself to earn $60,000,000 in connection fees from his Gulf War1 partners. Shall we forget Enron? Bush's "faith based" rhetoric, is nothing but a cover for his serial end-run of the Ten Commandments. When he writes his memoirs, he should title them: I AM A CROOK AND A PHONY CHRISTIAN.

The slavish defense of the oil-patch President, reminds me of previous uncritical blather from pathologically dependent thinkers like your spin consuming self: Ein Volk! Ein Reich! Ein Fuhrer!

Posted by Anonon 2003-04-25 12:48:21|| 2003-04-25 12:48:21|| Front Page Top

#7 Anyone else remember "Anonon" from lgf where he commented as "Nastification Agenda" (among other aliases)?

Posted by someone 2003-04-25 13:16:07|| 2003-04-25 13:16:07|| Front Page Top

#8 Anonon, dude. This is Rantburg. We joke around, swap shop talk and in general try to treat each other with respect (unless your name happens to be Murat). If you want to start flame wars, go to LGF.

Posted by 11A5S 2003-04-25 13:49:31|| 2003-04-25 13:49:31|| Front Page Top

#9 Liberalhawk---Your statement:

"Villepin's visit to Teheran wasnt simply a matter of French attraction to dictators - it was a question of coordinating pressure on the US position in Iraq."

Was right on. This little junket just goes to show that there is ABSOLUTELY NO SINCERITY in France's attempts to kiss and make up. They may not be a shooting enemy, but they're everything but. I do not know if this will do anything or if it is just diplo BS, but we should recall our ambassador to France for consultations. We must let France AND the rest of the world know how disgusted and pissed we are with Chiraq. This Iran thing raises me BP.

Posted by Alaska Paul 2003-04-25 20:36:35|| 2003-04-25 20:36:35|| Front Page Top

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