Webb's Web

Senator Webb on The Iraq War Bill - TPM

See, this is the thing, Sen. Webb can make the distinction between occupation and war yet few, if any, of the other pundits have caught up with the language. What we have in Iraq is an occupation and, despite all our wishing otherwise, acts like an occupation. The best way we can deal with the insurgency and the militias is to treat ourselves like occupiers and do the damn thing right. I wasn't in favor of this war and I haven't changed my mind yet but still, if you're going to do it then do it well. Wars are important things and performing poorly in a war reflects in world opinion and, more importantly, in the relations between nations. It doesn't matter what the press says or how the administration spins it. What matters is how other nations will treat us afterwards, particularly when we want something from them. We put ourselves in a weaker position due to poor performance. And the kicker is that it isn't the soldiers fault or even the generals per se. It has always been the fault of the civilian leadership.