With the 52-47 vote the other day in the Senate to stop the filibuster by Republicans on the war (Although as Political Forecast points out, Harry Reid may have the last word) , we have got to ask ourselves what can be done to let those members of Congress know that we will hold them accountable on election day. It is clear that they are unable to see that many voters were serious last year about ending this war.
Anyone who has been paying attention realizes that there is no good way for us to extricate ourselves. The truth is, there will likely be more bloodshed when we leave, because Iraq, largely due to our actions, is and will be in a civil war. Our exit strategy needs to include international or regional humanitarian aid for Iraq. Many Iraqis are likely to seek asylum and we should do everything in our power to address that need.
Beyond that, some of our troops need to be redeployed in Afghanistan with the international coalition that is still there to finish the mission (Remember Osama Bin Laden?) there and the rest, to come home.
We are past the idea of "cutting and running"--we need to cut our losses and make it possible for Iraq to stabilize itself. But we can't do it if Congress is playing politics with people's lives.
I don't question that some members of Congress are acting on their convictions, but I don't think they all are. Bipartisan legislation for drawing down troops should include a plan for helping to stabilize Iraq and Afghanistan, offering asylum and humanitarian aid, and appropriate funding to the returning soldiers and their families and the VA for the aftermath of the war.
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