Iraq: Learning the Lessons of Vietnam
By Melvin R. Laird From Foreign Affairs, November/December 2005
Summary: During Richard Nixon's first term, when I served as secretary of defense, we withdrew most U.S. forces from Vietnam while building up the South's ability to defend itself. The result was a success -- until Congress snatched defeat from the jaws of victory by cutting off funding for our ally in 1975. Washington should follow a similar strategy now, but this time finish the job properly. MELVIN R. LAIRD was Secretary of Defense from 1969 to 1973, Counselor to the President for Domestic Affairs from 1973 to 1974, and a member of the House of Representatives from 1952 to 1969. He currently serves as Senior Counselor for National and International Affairs at the Reader's Digest Association. www.foreignaffairs.org is copyright 2002--2005 by the Council on Foreign Relations. All rights reserved.
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In an incredibly well written Op-Ed piece, U.S. Congressman George Miller, Chairman of the Democratic Policy Committee, has put together a plan for Iraq. Miller is the first Democrat to articulate a detailed strategy. Here's an excerpt:
"LAST WEEK'S vote on the Iraqi constitution was important, but it should not distract Americans from the real problems we face there.
Not only is the new constitution a divisive document that leaves most key political issues unsettled, but its approval will not slow the growth or influence of the deadly insurgency. It remains that the U.S. strategy in Iraq is not working now and it will not ever work. We must change course, and there is a way to do that. "
Read more at Sector 7G.
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