The U.S. mission in Iraq is a "nightmare with no end in sight" because of political misjudgments after the fall of Saddam Hussein that continue today, a former chief of U.S.-led forces said Friday.
Retired Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, who commanded coalition troops for a year beginning June 2003, cast a wide net of blame for both political and military shortcomings in Iraq that helped open the way for the insurgency — such as disbanding the Saddam-era military and failing to cement ties with tribal leaders and quickly establish civilian government after Saddam was toppled.
He called current strategies — including the deployment of 30,000 additional forces earlier this year — a "desperate attempt" to make up for years of misguided policies in Iraq.
"There is no question that America is living a nightmare with no end in sight," Sanchez told a group of journalists covering military affairs.
The sad part is that if this had been any other administration these men would have been able to speak their minds and we could have most probably avoided much of this death and careless destruction.
Any Presidential hopeful that does not talk about bringing our troops home as soon as possible should not even be considered as a viable candidate for President.
I wish he had said is sooner...like before the Surge would have been helpful..and maybe someone should ask some serious questions about AbuGahrib and Gitmo while they are at it...if we are discussing "failures"....sigh..
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