Right wing in denial over Iraq reality

Republican radio's Charlie Sykes fell right into step, as usual, with the White House and state GOP this week in an effort to build support for the debacle in Iraq.

They have all gone after Sen. Russ Feingold for being the first one to call for "a policy on Iraq that includes a flexible timetable for completing our military mission there, so that we can focus on our national security priority – defeating the global terrorist networks that threaten the U.S."

But the London Times reports that the Bush administration is planning to withdraw significant numbers of National Guard troops from Iraq, despite President Bush's claims this week. The paper reveals that the U.S. National Guard is "planning to cut the number of its troops in Iraq by 75 per cent over the next year in a dramatic change of approach by the American military." Such an approach would mean that nearly 50,000 of the 159,000 troops in Iraq will soon be heading home.

Can we expect Wisconsin Republican Chair Rick Graber to call this a "cowardly cut and run strategy?"

The strain on the National Guard has been felt in a variety of ways.

First, our troops have been asked to serve multiple tours.

Second, recruitment is down. "The active-duty Army and the part-time Army National Guard and Army Reserve all missed their 2005 recruiting goals by 8% to 20%. The three fell short by a combined 24,000 enlistees."

And third, the Guard is encountering equipment problems to deal with domestic responsibilities. A recent GAO study found "more than 101,000 pieces of National Guard equipment, including items such as trucks, radios and night vision devices, have been sent overseas."

If Sykes had his way he would continue to run the military into the ground, all in the name of Bush's failed "stay the course" strategy in Iraq that is costing 4 troop deaths a day and $5.6 billion a month.

And about that fight against global terrorist networks that threaten the U.S., a fight that Feingold said Iraq would distract us from. For the Sykes and Graber crowd that likes to think that the Bushies can walk and chew gum at the same time, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report this week that says the "government's efforts to help foreign nations cut off the supply of money to terrorists, a critical goal for the Bush administration, have been stymied by infighting among American agencies, leadership problems and insufficient financing." The government still "lacks an integrated strategy" for assisting foreign countries in the effort to curb terrorist financing around the globe, the report states.

In one instance, "the State Department refused to allow a Treasury official to enter an unidentified foreign country last year to help with strategies to fight terrorist financing because of turf battles," causing a delay of several months. The New York Times notes that "experts in the field say the results [of President Bush's anti-terror financing strategy] have been spotty, with few clear dents in Al Qaeda's ability to move money and finance terrorist attacks.It all makes you wonder what ever happened to . . .