"Former Secretary of State Colin Powell advised President Bush before the Iraq war to send more troops to the country, but the administration did not follow his recommendation, Powell said in an interview broadcast Sunday.
Critics accuse Bush and Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld of failing to send enough soldiers to secure the peace in Iraq after the invasion three years ago.
Powell said he gave the advice to now retired Gen. Tommy Franks, who developed and executed the Iraq invasion plan, and Rumsfeld while the president was present.
"I made the case to Gen. Franks and Secretary Rumsfeld before the president that I was not sure we had enough troops," Powell said in an interview on Britain's ITV television, according to a transcript released by the network. "The case was made, it was listened to, it was considered. ... A judgment was made by those responsible that the troop strength was adequate."
Powell, who served as chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff during the 1991 Gulf War, is known for his belief in deploying decisive force with a clear exit strategy in any conflict.
"The president's military advisers felt that the size of the force was adequate, they may still feel that years later. Some of us don't, I don't," Powell said. "In my perspective, I would have preferred more troops but you know, this conflict is not over."
"At the time the president was listening to those who were supposed to be providing him with military advice," Powell said. "They were anticipating a different kind of immediate aftermath of the fall of Baghdad, it turned out to be not exactly as they had anticipated."
Rumsfeld has rejected criticism that he had sent too few U.S. troops to Iraq, saying that Franks and two other generals who oversaw the campaign's planning — John Abizaid and George Casey — had determined the overall number of troops, and that he and Bush agreed with them."
Powell was the lone ranger and now he can sit back and point fingers. It's also funny how Powell always seems to get interviewed whenever there is anantiwar protest. Who is his press agent - Cindy Sheehan?
State Department (don't get me started).
But Powell gave his two cents and was outvoted.
Of course that gives fuel to the 'critics' (that MSM talk for REPORTERS) about the insurgency, which the premise that many of them entered Iraq AFTER the fall of Saddam simply isn't true. Many of the insurgency leaders and their teams were in Iraq long BEFORE we invaded. Doing what? TRAINING and WAITING.
Yeah, they knew we were coming for a least a year before it happened. After all they had plenty of warning we were coming.
is the picture becoming clearer now?
Salman Pak wasn't an amusement park ya know!
People forget that the way we so quickly got to Baghdad seemed a lot like the story of a police raid where the cops break down the door with guns bared and no one is there. Causing them to conclude, "Someone tipped the crooks?", only then to find they walked into an ambush as the building blows up.
And who's just was it to ensure that the place was properly scouted out before the guns arrived? Yeah, the surveillance guys and gals.
Who's job was it to make sure we had the RIGHT info on Iraq?
Tip: It starts with "C" and ends with an "A", and to repeat what "International man of Mystery" sat then and sits now on the Senate Intelligence Committee?
How about it now - is the picture REAL clear?
If Powell isn't careful he may give alway the whole game. In that respect I hope he keeps yakking.
Who is zooming who?
iraq Politics News bush war on terror spying patriot act nsa CIA mary O. mcCarthy
Subscribe by Email
Follow Updates Articles from This Blog via Email
No Comments