WOAI San Antonio News: Dean: US Won't Win in Iraq

Source: http://www.woai.com/news/local/story.aspx?content_id=C36A87B9-63A0-4CDE-AA91-B41571AFD3AF

Listen: http://cctvimedia.clearchannel.com/woai/deanint.mp3

Watch this story: http://www.woai.com/mediacenter/?videoId=181068,565

Saying the "idea that we're going to win the war in Iraq is an idea which is just plain wrong," Democratic National Chairman Howard Dean predicted today that the Democratic Party will come together on a proposal to withdraw National Guard and Reserve troops immediately, and all US forces within two years.

Dean made his comments in an interview on WOAI Radio in San Antonio.

RNC Chairman Ken Mehlman Responds: http://cctvimedia.clearchannel.com/woai/audio/mehlman.mp3

"I've seen this before in my life. This is the same situation we had in Vietnam. Everybody then kept saying, 'just another year, just stay the course, we'll have a victory.' Well, we didn't have a victory, and this policy cost the lives of an additional 25,000 troops because we were too stubborn to recognize what was happening."

Dean says the Democrat position on the war is 'coalescing,' and is likely to include several proposals.

"I think we need a strategic redeployment over a period of two years," Dean said. "Bring the 80,000 National Guard and Reserve troops home immediately. They don't belong in a conflict like this anyway. We ought to have a redeployment to Afghanistan of 20,000 troops, we don't have enough troops to do the job there and its a place where we are welcome. And we need a force in the Middle East, not in Iraq but in a friendly neighboring country to fight (terrorist leader Musab) Zarqawi, who came to Iraq after this invasion. We've got to get the target off the backs of American troops.

Dean didn't specify which country the US forces would deploy to, but he said he would like to see the entire process completed within two years. He said the Democrat proposal is not a 'withdrawal,' but rather a 'strategic redeployment' of U.S. forces.

"The White House wants us to have a permanent commitment to Iraq. This is an Iraqi problem. President Bush got rid of Saddam Hussein and that was a great thing, but that could have been done in a very different way. But now that we're there we need to figure out how to leave. 80% of Iraqis want us to leave, and it's their country."

Dean also compared the controversy over pre-war intelligence to the Watergate scandal which brought down Richard Nixon's presidency in 1974.

"What we see today is very much like what was going in Watergate," Dean said. "It turns out there is a lot of good evidence that President Bush did not tell the truth when he was asking Congress for the power to go to war. The President said last week that Congress saw the same intelligence that he did in making the decision to go to war, and that is flat out wrong. The President withheld some intelligence from the Senate Intelligence Committee. He withheld the report from the CIA that in fact there was no evidence of weapons of mass destruction (in Iraq), that they did not have a nuclear program. They (the White House) selectively gave intelligence to the United States Senate and the United States Congress and got them to give the go ahead to attack these people."

Your Response to Howard Dean's Iraq War Statements

Source: http://www.woai.com/news/local/story.aspx?content_id=1EB80F6C-FA16-497C-9E35-3F808AC8BFD2

LAST UPDATE: 12/6/2005 9:59:29 PM

In an interview on News Radio 1200 WOAI, DNC Chair Howard Dean said, "The idea that the United States is going to win the war in Iraq is just plain wrong." Dean criticized what he called President Bush's "permanent commitment to a failed strategy" and called for withdrawal from Iraq to "take the targets off our troops' back."

Dean’s statements have provoked many responds. Here is a sampling…

Could Howard Dean be more wrong? Iraq is like Vietnam only in the sense that the anti-war movement is undermining the Armed Forces’ mission there. Howard Dean and other Democrats hate Bush so much they are willing to compromise this country’s safety and standing in the world for political gains. The Democrats offer no alternative to our actions in Iraq. Withdrawal is their only solution.

Admittedly, the administration made some mistakes in Iraq. They recognize that and are adjusting. In a short time they have toppled a dictator, held elections, written a Constitution and will ratify it. Pretty good for a couple of years work. How long did it take America to get to that point?

- Kevin Barry from Cohasset, MA

Will the press ever ask any questions of Cheney / Bush / Rice /Rumsfield before their term expires?

- Bob Robison from Nashville, TN

Howard Dean is insane and dangerous to mankind. Please investigate.

- Dave Lerbs

Howard Dean is an idiot. How a man can be so anti-American and reap the benefits of the blood shed by our men and women in the military is disgusting. He and all the democrats who support him should be ashamed of themselves.

- Murray Ally

The Marines took the border town of Husaybah with over 300 terrorist killed, and we now own the town that was a funnel for fighters coming into Iraq from Syria. That's "losing the war in Iraq"? Howard Dean knows nothing. Our Marines can walk through walls. Only Howard Dean can lose the war in the media. What a seditious disgrace to say we will lose the war in Iraq.

- Stephen Conlon from Charlotte, NC

We're getting very tired of reading and listening to hard up losers like "Smart-Mouth" Howard Dean and Jean Claude "Cut & Run" Kerry. These two unmatched bookends are sorry specimens of US patriotism. They absolutely do not have a clue about working together with the administration towards what is best for the nation. Rather, they prefer to make silly, unpatriotic, highly partisan statements that do more harm than good and only have the goals of the failed Democratic Party in mind. Both are disloyal, self centered jerks. Both have a serious lack of credibility.

- Ross Parker

Howard Dean should ashamed to call himself an American. The cut and run party that he heads has the same mentality his party had during the Vietnam War. His party and people like him caused the death of millions of Vietnamese and Cambodians. They obviously have no problem living with themselves over that, just as they would have no problem living with millions of Iraqis murdered by jihadists if we pulled out of Iraq.

- Art Kubach

Here's a news tip for you from someone who lived in Vermont under then-Governor Howard Dean for a decade: Howard Dean is a complete and utter idiot. -Russell Spreeman from La Porte, IN

I am a fourth generation Vermonter and I can attest native Vermonters are ashamed of ALL their representatives on the national scene.

-VIAFLA2

Howard Dean said the Democrats will come together on a proposal to withdraw troops from Iraq, but neglects to say what the real plan is. Just another slam at the President, from a man who knows how to do nothing but vent his anger. The more he opens his mouth in public, the more he denigrates the Democratic party.

Obviously, I am a Republican. I have many friends that are Democrat, and three of them have decided to change to Republican. Were it be known, I believe many people are going to follow. Hillary Clinton, Howard Dean, Ted Kennedy, etc. are pulling the party's chances of ever winning another election.

Say what they want, our country is safer now that we have a determined President who articulates his plans and sticks by them. He has our country's interest in his heart. The Democrats have only hatred for Republicans, and greed enough to make them dangerous.

Terrorists do not care if a leader is a Republican or Democrat. However, they do fear the determination and strong will of our President. Put a Democrat in power, and see how long it takes for us to experience worse than 911. It frightens me even to think of it.

- Marie J. Clough from Ellsworth, ME

Let the Democrats run the war on terrorism and watch the world succumb to evil not seen since the days of Hitler. Pass along to Dean that we can't win if we're not there. It makes no sense to turn tail and run now, or ever. That would be a huge disaster to our relations with any in the world. What country would believe us after such a display of cowardice? My son didn't join the U.S. Cowards! NO! He joined the U.S. ARMY, as did all of the other volunteers that make up our defense, no matter the branch they chose.

- Bob Harvey

Howard Dean's remarks about "never winning the Iraqi war" certainly have given aid and comfort to our enemy and are nothing short of treasonous. They are irresponsible and have endangered the lives of every one of our military personnel.

- LJCohrt

Howard Dean ... He should rot in hell!

- Walter Dixon from Fairhope, AL

I believe in free speech and I can certainly tolerate some pretty crazy political debates, but I believe with all my heart that Howard Dean should have kept this opinion to himself. I come from a very long line of military family. I have family serving now. Why doesn't anyone believe when Howard Dean (and other leaders) tell the world that "we cannot win the war in Iraq" that is adds mental stress/anger to our troops and comforts Saddam, Ramsey Clark, and the terrorists?

If Howard Dean visits Iraq and our troops then he might have a different opinion. He might be able to show respect when he tells the world our troops can't win this war. I don't think Howard Dean understands what is going on.

- Patsy Robertson from Atlanta, GA

Can you find a way to keep Dean talking? Every time he opens his mouth more and more people are realizing that Democrats are traitors and seek the defeat of America if that can hurt Bush. They are guilty of treason, should be arrested, indicted, tried, found guilty, sentenced and SHOT FOR TREASON or hanged like Eichmann. Benedict Arnold was a patriot compared to Democrats.

- JWB

Dean is lying. Congress did see all pertinent intelligence. The truth is the only intel they didn't see made even a more compelling case for removing Saddam.

- Dan

You quoted Howard Dean as saying "The President said last week that Congress saw the same intelligence that he did in making the decision to go to war, and that is flat out wrong. The President withheld some intelligence from the Senate Intelligence Committee."

The Senate Intelligence Committee is an OVERSIGHT committee. That means the OVERSEE. The Senate Intelligence Committee sees the raw intelligence data before the President does.

As a journalist, you have a commitment to the truth, even if it isn't pleasant. Howard Dean told a lie. You have a duty to present the truth... that the Democrats opposing the war not only supported war against Iraq in 2002... and that they not only accused Saddam of stockpiling WMD's and supporting terrorists BEFORE 9-11... but that said Democrats had a greater insight into and access of the intelligence Bush was using to make the case for war against Iraq.

It's funny that the media couldn't mention Swift Vets without accusing them of lies...yet they can feature a news story based on a lie and won't even log into Lexis Nexus to easily refute it.

- Tony Ferrero from Morris, IL

I'm a soldier who served in Iraq and find Dean’s pessimistic views of what this military can accomplish quite distressing.

- CJ Grisham

Your article about what Dean had to say is nothing more than giving comfort to the enemy, which you, personally, are also guilty of. Certainly, we have the freedom to say what we wish (except for very limited restrictions which have been found illegal in a reasonable court of law), but Dean's lies don't need to be given more airplay.

As a Vietnam Veteran, I am very aware of what happened there, and what went wrong. Dean is doing nothing more than twisting facts, glossing over the good and bold-faced lying. From someone of his ilk, you'd expect nothing else.

- R. Patrick

The Democratic Party lost the war in Viet Nam first by trying to maintain the status quo and not win the war by attacking the North, and second by forcing an immediate pullout through lack of funding in Congress with the idea of letting the South Viet Namese defend themselves.

The Democratic Party is proposing the same thing with Iraq. The difference is that we aren't attempting to keep the status quo, and we are not fighting Iraq, nor even a portion of Iraq. Rather than a formal government, we are fighting "imported" terrorists, and some disgruntled Sunnis. A completely different scenario! -Mike Kelley

Thanks for highlighting Mr. Dean's lunacy. It's nice to hear that the Democrat’s Iraq strategy is finally starting to coalesce after all this time, though I think his prediction of defeat won't bode well for their chances at the polls. "Cutting and running" and "failure and defeat" don't sit well with most Americans, though apparently these appear to be central themes to the liberals’ platform.

One thing you can say for Mr. Dean is that he's always good for print.

- Scott from Pittsburgh, PA