Shock: Pelosi’s new intel chair wants more troops in Iraq
posted at 8:04 pm on December 5, 2006 by Allahpundit
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The best part? This is the guy she picked over Alcee “Sorry, Haters” Hastings. Turns out he’s a wingnut who believes, for whatever crazy reason, that it’d be a better idea to liquidate the death squads instead of turning the country over to them.
Wingnuts.
“We’re not going to have stability in Iraq until we eliminate those militias, those private armies,” Reyes said. “We have to consider the need for additional troops to be in Iraq, to take out the militias and stabilize Iraq … We certainly can’t leave Iraq and run the risk that it becomes [like] Afghanistan” was before the 2001 invasion by the United States…
When asked how many additional troops he envisioned sending to Iraq, Reyes replied: “I would say 20,000 to 30,000—for the specific purpose of making sure those militias are dismantled, working in concert with the Iraqi military…
When a reporter suggested that was not a position that was likely to be popular with many House Democrats, Reyes replied: “Well again, I differ in that I don’t want Iraq to become the next Afghanistan. We could not allow Iraq to become a safe haven for Al Qaeda, for Hamas, for Hizbullah, or anybody else. We cannot allow Iran or Syria to have a free hand in there to further destabilize the Middle East.”
Actually, never mind what I said about the best part. This is the best part, because this is what’s going to have the nutroots throwing fits:
Reyes added that he was “very clear” about his position to Pelosi when she chose him over two rivals—Rep. Jane Harman of California and Rep. Alcee Hastings—to head the critical intelligence post…
[W]hen asked what he told Pelosi about his thinking on Iraq, Reyes replied: “What I said was, we can’t afford to leave there. And anybody who says, we are going pull out our troops immediately, is being dishonest … We’re all interested in getting out of Iraq. That’s a common goal. How we do it, I think, is the tough part. There are those that say, they don’t care what Iraq looks like once we leave there. Let’s just leave there. And I argue against that. I don’t think that’s responsible. And I think it plays right into the hands of Syria and Iran.”
They top it off with reaction from card-carrying neocon/NRO contributor Cliff May (“Wow, that’s remarkable”) and anti-semiteZionist Ray McGovern (“Have they learned nothing from Vietnam?”).
I wonder how Mikey’s handling the news.
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I see a meltdown of monumental proportion heading our way. Who’s going into the nutroots fever swamps to gauge reaction?
Pablo on December 5, 2006 at 8:17 PM
Rumor has it he ate himself into a coma….
Pam on December 5, 2006 at 8:22 PM
Pablo, I tried. But I stopped after finding a thread on election fraud.
2006 “election fraud.”
That’s right – they’re still beating the drum.
The dream will never die!
Slublog on December 5, 2006 at 8:26 PM
Maybe we need to forget about delusions of textbook ‘principled Republicans’ leading us to victory. We need backstabbing shank-carrying Democrats, willing to lie their way into power and then double-cross their base. Finally somebody willing to go Putin on Iraq. The party of Jackson, Polk, FDR, and LBJ ought to know a thing or two about playing dirtier than our enemies.
a4g on December 5, 2006 at 8:28 PM
Pelosi would have chosen Newt Gingrich over Jane Harman. Pelosi holds grudges it seems. She will also never select any woman at all for any power position. If she could boot Hillary out of the Senate, she would I bet. I have no doubt she wants to be President too. The race this year will be interesting.
CrimsonFisted on December 5, 2006 at 8:29 PM
I think you will find that Texans of Hispanic roots are patriotic.
beens21 on December 5, 2006 at 8:30 PM
He is a Tejano, what else did you expect?
Oilpatcher on December 5, 2006 at 9:07 PM
Sorry, McGovern, it seems someone has learned the mistakes from Afghanistan instead of Vietnam. Who would have thought to apply a lesson from a Muslim nation on a Muslim nation instead of applying one from a Communist one? Wingnuts!
Why, three years into Vietnam, we had defeated the entire Vietnamese military, set up a democracy, and our worst problem was a rogue band of 50,000 insurgents and terrorists!
Wait, you mean to tell me we never defeated the North Vietnamese military? We never set up a democracy for the entire country? Superpowers Russia and China were directly working against us by helping our enemy?
Damn, that’s not like Iraq at all!
Seixon on December 5, 2006 at 9:07 PM
A Democrat who made a point I agree with. Presses stopping time.
JammieWearingFool on December 5, 2006 at 9:08 PM
More troops could be bad.
LBJ sent more troops to ‘Nam.
Did that help?
More troops with orders to destroy any and all militias –
that could help Iraq.
But more troops without such orders – won’t help, IMHO.
Marvin on December 5, 2006 at 9:33 PM
I applaud the man for standing up. He’s a good example of vote for the individual, not the party. Speaking of which, the republicans as a majority couldn’t have sucked any worse so don’t be surprised if we see more examples like this one. Hopefully from both sides.
Griz on December 5, 2006 at 9:35 PM
Heh.
The good old days when the only things Democrats and Republicans made sense. When they disagreed on raising taxes and social programs. Hello common sense 1980’s here we come! All we need is a “Cheers” and a “Cosby Show” and we will be complete.
Theworldisnotenough on December 5, 2006 at 9:42 PM
The one world community intelligentsia at dailymelt.com must be sick over this right now. Personally, i think most of us saw this coming from a mile away.
Metro on December 5, 2006 at 9:51 PM
And therein lies the reasons I don’t fear Hispanic Americans, I praise them. If they can fight for their lives in TX so long ago (as Texicans), then they surely can fight for America today. Go Silvestre. My kind of Democrat.
Subsunk
Subsunk on December 5, 2006 at 10:15 PM
We can grow young again.
Ouabam on December 5, 2006 at 10:25 PM
Most Texas Democrats are pretty conservative, except for the ones from Houston and Austin. There are a lot of Mexicans where i live in Dallas, and they all drive Chevy trucks, own guns, and drink a lot of beer, just like me and my redneck buddies. I’m not saying i want open borders, i’m just saying that the mexicans i know here in Dallas are decent hard working people and this guy Reyes sounds like the people i know.
Scot on December 5, 2006 at 10:35 PM
I’ve been hoping the blue dog’s would have some effect on the old socialist left within the Democratic Party. I’m still waiting to see if it’s going to be business as usual for the GOP though.
Buzzy on December 5, 2006 at 10:38 PM
I believe it when I see it signed/materialized. However, hope springs eternal.
Have KOS, HuffPo, Sullivan, Lamont (never mind), Messrs Gates, Bush 43, Baker, etc. heard of this yet?
Entelechy on December 5, 2006 at 10:43 PM
I am very glad to hear Reyes tell it like he feels it. I’d love to see more on both sides of the aisle actually do the same thing and lets kick some butt and get our troops home. Get the politicians in Iraq to start getting some smarts soon too or they will be toast just as fast or sooner over there.
bones47 on December 5, 2006 at 10:44 PM
Hate to be a party pooper, all the right sounds for staying the course are there, but what’s this about all those extra troops needed? Next thing you know, they’ll be saying, the military is not reaching its recruiting goals for this number, Iraq is too critical, so we need a DRAFT. Ladies first! 18-40. No college deferements.
naliaka on December 5, 2006 at 10:52 PM
If you have been listening to Rumsfeld, 40% of our military have not been to Iraq. Well, a draft might supplement it.
Ouabam on December 5, 2006 at 10:57 PM
[W]hen asked what he told Pelosi about his thinking on Iraq, Reyes replied: “What I said was, we can’t afford to leave there. And anybody who says, we are going pull out our troops immediately, is being dishonest … We’re all interested in getting out of Iraq. That’s a common goal. How we do it, I think, is the tough part. There are those that say, they don’t care what Iraq looks like once we leave there. Let’s just leave there. And I argue against that. I don’t think that’s responsible. And I think it plays right into the hands of Syria and Iran.”
R D on December 5, 2006 at 11:25 PM
I would be willing to bet that is our leaders decided to finally ight this war to win that we would have sufficient volunteers to not need any draft.
bbz123 on December 5, 2006 at 11:27 PM
Fact is stranger than fiction! Did Reyes get blessings from the REAL leaders of the Dems – Moore – Sheehan and Kos? I think Pelosi will have to relocate to Wyoming. The SF delgation must be getting their war paint on. I think Pelosi must have OD’ed on Botox – clogged her freakin ears. Reyes said lets go full out – she thought he said pull out and nominated him.
iam7545 on December 6, 2006 at 12:04 AM
If you’re gonna send more troops, at least let them do their job…kill people and break things!
GEEZ!
SouthernGent on December 6, 2006 at 12:12 AM
Heh. There are things you can say in the back room, but not where it can be recorded. I’ll wager a six pack, Pelosi is absolutely, positively, steaming mad.
Imagine the pressure she will be receiving from the nutroots tomorrow. Shoot, probably already started.
AZ_Redneck on December 6, 2006 at 12:36 AM
Where was his voice when Sadr’s militia was first being fought? And when the battle was called off, inexplicably?
Cleaning up a mess the second time you try it is always harder than just getting it done once.
Because the “mess” has learned from that mistake.
But, if Reyes is serious, let’s put the “Phony War” to rest and get the real war going. And instill the fear of God into the invading jihadists and the homicidal militias of Iraq.
As Patton said:
“May God have mercy on them, because I sure as hell won’t.“
profitsbeard on December 6, 2006 at 12:49 AM
Who’d a thunk the Democratic Party could still end politics at the border? I may not be happy about Congress for the next two years, but there’s hope I won’t be depressed.
hadsil on December 6, 2006 at 1:29 AM
And then he woke up and heard about this.
SnakeintheGrass on December 6, 2006 at 1:30 AM
Indeed. I don’t recall my basic training experience consisting of anything other than learning how to put a hurtin’ on an enemy.
x95b10 on December 6, 2006 at 1:31 AM
As expected, the incoming Democrats are all over the place on matters. In the meantime, The beat goes on
LewWaters on December 6, 2006 at 2:18 AM
love this by:
Yep, now the democRATS lied their flaming asses off to get into power, they will do what Rumsfeld did.. and if they fail, they wil say 2 years wasn’t enough time..
best thing that can happen now is all out WWIII. That’s the only thing our country seems to understand is the pure hell that’s coming..
retired on December 6, 2006 at 2:54 AM
Well, there’s not a word about Reyes on the front page of dkos, though there is this:
New Democrats? Stupid Democrats.
Heh. They haven’t even gotten the car out of the garage, and the wheels are already falling off.
Pablo on December 6, 2006 at 8:33 AM
Even DU seems to be just phoning in perfunctory outrage, though they do seem to realize that that Nancy will not be getting them pony she promised for Winter Solstice. Bwwaaahahahahaa!
Pablo on December 6, 2006 at 8:42 AM
ditto:
They’re probably shipping bicarb by the ton to the folks at kos and huffpo and the democr@p leadership.
The “blue dogs” are trying to save their party!
This is just like championship wrestling when it was fun. There were no good guys, it was just a free for all. We sat on the sidelines and threw rotten eggs at those who pissed us off. It is the 1980’s all over again and the dems are going for an infighting “Battle Royal”. Where’s the popcorn, it’s gonna be an all-nighter.
tormod on December 6, 2006 at 8:43 AM
How True
BohicaTwentyTwo on December 6, 2006 at 8:47 AM
Can you say “bait and switch”? That’s what the Democrats did to their voters. I’m really curious to see how the pull-out-now crowd responds. I know Michael Moore has already threatened the Dem leadership with revenge if they don’t pull out of Iraq within a month. Whatever–it’s not like he or his rabid rabble of followers would ever vote for a Republican or anything. I don’t think Pelosi and Reid are scared.
aero on December 6, 2006 at 9:37 AM
Well, I have been listening very closely to Rumsfield from the day he started and he and the military DO NOT NEED OR DESIRE a draft. On the record, off the record, everywhere.
Readers who need more background should try The New Face of War by Bruce Berkowitz. The high tech military requires fewer, but highly trained, highly motivated and longer serving soldiers. A volunteer army serves that need perfectly. Right now, the military academies are getting 10 applications for every 1 slot, reenlistments are high,and the military is meeting new recruitment goals right now, without a draft.
So, why do the Democrats want to wreck all that with a draft? They want a draft over the objections of the military, so clearly, they don’t care what the military needs. They want to draft women, too, which the military doesn’t want, either. A draft would make the military overlarded with malcontents, incompetants and slackers, drive up the costs of defending our nation, both monetarily and in human lives. What’s going to be the result when Suzy, whose high school letter was in cheerleading is tossed out to face Jihadi Ali ?
So, why do the Democrats so desperately want a draft? They know very well that the majority of soldiers are coming from the solid middle to upper middle class, so where’s the disparity? This “more troops in Iraq are needed to win” statement is phony coming from them.
naliaka on December 6, 2006 at 10:39 AM
That’s nice and all, but CENTCOM has said that we don’t have 20 or 30k more troops to send. So… he’s gonna team up with Rangel to get the draft going too?
E L Frederick (Sniper One) on December 6, 2006 at 11:45 AM
We’ve got 20-30,000 more troops to send, just not for an extended period of time. We’ve bumped up troop levels to 160k for the elections in the past, we can do it to crackdown on Baghdad for the next 6 months.
This article is the most positive development since they killed Zarqawi, and could have even more long-lasting positive effects. That Reyes is saying this, and that he made it clear to Pelosi that this was his position before she appointed him is an incredibly significant sign that the Dems might actually realize that Iraq is not just a political club with which to beat Bush on the head, but a real foreign policy concern for the United States in failure is not an option. I’ve had this fantasy ever since the election that Bush, Reid and Pelosi would hold a press conference and declare that while they will continue to have many domestic policy differences, they are all Americans first and that we will finish the job in Iraq. A public display of national unity on the mission there would go a long way towards convincing the various forces causing the bloodshed in Iraq (other than possibly al-Qaeda) that they are not going to wait us out, and that they should fight their battles in the political context rather than in the streets.
Dudley Smith on December 6, 2006 at 1:10 PM
Well put.
Your fantasy is quite appealing, but I for one am not holding my breath. I’d be very pleased if such a thing did happen, though.
Dinsdale Piranha on December 6, 2006 at 2:24 PM
How about the idea that this guy might be an honest man? Naah, he’s a democrat. ;^)
honora on December 7, 2006 at 10:37 AM
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