Outside the Beltway

Outside the Beltway

Petraeus Brain Trust Puts Six Month Limit on Winning

James Joyner
9

The Guardian‘s Simon Tisdall reports, “An elite team of officers advising US commander General David Petraeus in Baghdad has concluded the US has six months to win the war in Iraq – or face a Vietnam-style collapse in political and public support that could force the military into a hasty retreat.”

We’re already at incredibly low levels of public and political support for the war, so six months may be optimistic. On the other hand, I’m not sure that “winning” (however that is defined) the war in that time is required. The natural inclination of the public is to support an ongoing war effort once troops are committed and lives are lost. If there is a substantial turnaround in the perception of futility–a massive reduction in violence, signs that the Iraqi government and security forces are getting their act together, and the elimination of some major terrorist cells–the public will rally and support a sustained effort.

If we’re still where we are today even three or four months from now, however, the pressure to bring the troops home will increase to the point where Congress could cut off funding. So, it’s quite probable that we’ll be at a decisive point six months from now.

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9 responses to “Petraeus Brain Trust Puts Six Month Limit on Winning”

  1. Edgardo Avatar
    Edgardo

    Why should we trust The Guardian (or NYT, or WP) on their rumors about the war? Most likely they are now trying to set some artificial deadline for a war they have always been against.

  2. Anderson Avatar
    Anderson

    Why should we trust The Guardian (or NYT, or WP) on their rumors about the war? Most likely they are now trying to set some artificial deadline for a war they have always been against.

    Exactly right. Would you please tell us where we should get our news about the war, sir?

  3. legion Avatar
    legion

    So, is Bush going to give this team of sages the same level of respect he gave the ISG? Or will Cheney lead the charge in another rousing chorus of “stay the course, lads”?

  4. laura Avatar
    laura

    You are probably right abut public feeling–it is illogical and possibly immoral to fight a battle that has already been lost in a war that didn’t need to be fought–but, if there is a chance of redeeming the mess by winning, then, sure, lots of folks, including me, would like to do that.

    However, you and just about everyone else, are leaving out Afghanistan. Which matters a lot.

    Afghanistan is the war we have a valid reason for fighting. Afghanistan is where Al Quaida still is and where they are expanding their base. Afghanistan is where we are quietly losing because the Bush administration had no commitment to fight there. Afghanistan is the war we should be fighting, but can’t, because we are stuck in Iraq, the war we shouldn’t be fighting.

    It is amazing to me how conservatives and “war supporters” and “soldier supporters” are silent about Afghanistan. BTW, that last sentence is not a shot at you, just the knee jerks who go straight to “Those mean old Democrats want to steal my victory” people.

    In six months, if nothing significant has changed Iraq, we will have to get out because of lack of soldiers, lack of money and lack of leadership from the Adminnistration to provide those elements. Bush and the Republicans will do what they always do: abdicate responsibility and blame game. The I-want-to-win-but-don’t-want-make-any-sacrifices-myself types will cry like two year olds who lost their favorite toy. Will anyone mention Afghanistan?

    Fareed (the guy with the unspellable last name that starts with Z) from the Time magazine had a constructive suggestion. His idea is that, since one of the biggest sources of violence in Iraq is unemployment, we pull back and stop our share of the fighting and have a “surge ” of economic support instead. He listed a significant number of major business ventures that are only a few million dollars from reality. Since the fighting costs BILLIONS, a shift to economic support would be cheaper and might be more effective.

    Then maybe we would have the wherewithal to win in Afghanistan.

  5. iaintbacchus Avatar
    iaintbacchus

    I think you’re missing the distinction between politically unpopular and militarily untenable.
    Patraeus is a three star general. That means that those elite advisers are most likely full colonels and brigadiers. At that level they don’t spend much time talking to congress. And public opinion in the US, as opposed to Baghdad, isn’t a consideration. They’re concerned with the situation on the ground. And soldiers are not trained to lose gracefully. If those officers are projecting a “hasty retreat” in 6 months then the situation must be very close to unwinnable now.
    So this isn’t about winning or losing anymore. It’s about conserving military assets. In other words, keeping the army alive to fight another day in a war we still can win, and that we needed to win in the first place, like Afghanistan/Pakistan.
    (And bless you for having a spellchecker for the comments box.)

  6. Philadelphia Steve Avatar
    Philadelphia Steve

    So, we have one more “friedman” (six-month period) that will be “crucial” so we can “turn the corner” in Iraq. At the end of this time either the insurgents will “be on their last legs” or Bush will “cut and run”.

    How many times have we heard this before?

    Prediction:
    In six months, we will hear from the Bush team, “We are reviewing the results (or lack thereof) in Iraq and will recommend a Surge to Victory that should achieve results in another six months….”

    The real motive, of course, is to run out the clock so George W. Bush can “get out of Dodge” before the roof caves in by January 2009.

  7. gil Avatar
    gil

    The end game for Bush is to continue with the war one way or another until his term ends. A coward to the end, this man will try his best to pass the buck to some unfortunate future President that will have to finally confront reality head on.

    It is sad so many more Americans soldiers will have to die so that a discredited politician, at the end of his career can “retire” with a sense of dignity…. Or as some other people would put it “with a fig leaf to protect his private parts”.

    So much for the “macho man Cowboy” in the White House…. In the end he was no macho, he was no Cowboy, and he was no leader.

  8. Randy Avatar
    Randy

    You’re joking when you say the NY Times has always been against the war, right? Remember Judith Miller and her alarming, but wholly unsubstantiated articles in the lead up to the war? She pretty much copied down whatever the administration and Chalabi spoon fed her. The NY Times is a weird beast. It’s editorial page is moderately left of center, but it’s news reporting before to the war was scarily propagandistic. The Times made it OK for the entire mainstream media to wear Bush colored glasses. We must hold our journalists to higher standards.

  9. Jonathan Avatar
    Jonathan

    General Petraeus’ nickname amongst some of the troops who served with him is General Betrayus due to his love of the limelight and his talent for self promotion.

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