thedrifter
11-26-05, 06:24 AM
Cole is optimistic after Iraq visit
By Chris Casteel
The Oklahoman
WASHINGTON - Rep. Tom Cole got to sleep in Baghdad last weekend.
After making his fifth trip to Iraq in three years, Cole, R-Moore, said the fact that six congressmen were allowed to stay the night in the capital "spoke volumes" about the progress being made in security. In his previous trips, he has had to leave
"They did give us body armor and a helmet to have beside the bed" at the palace once used by Saddam Hussein, Cole said.
But Cole said, "Each time I go there, there are more Iraqis doing more for themselves."
There are 212,000 Iraqis serving in about 100 battalions and police forces, he said. That is now more than the 150,000 multinational forces present in Iraq, Cole said.
And though he predicted a "serious drawdown" of American troops next year, Cole said the United States will have to keep significant forces to help the fledgling democracy take shape in Iraq and allow for some continuity in the government.
Getting Americans to remain patient and committed is going to require political leaders to explain continuously what's at stake in the country and the region, Cole said.
"This is an expensive process, in lives and money," he said in an interview. "You have to convince the American people that it's in their interest. And it is."
Iraqis question resolution
Cole left for Iraq on Nov. 19, the day after the House engaged in a fierce debate about a resolution to pull U.S. troops from Iraq immediately.
Republicans offered the resolution in response to Rep. John Murtha's unexpected call for removing the nation's troops.
The resolution, which Democrats said distorted Murtha's intent, only got three votes in support.
Cole said the Marines and the Iraqis he met with in Iraq had heard about the resolution and the debate and "wanted to understand what it was ... was the American commitment still there," he said.
"They like the outcome of the vote," he said.
Aside from the partisan exchanges and the barbs, he said, the bottom line was that over 403 members of the House voted not to remove U.S. troops immediately.
The Marines he met with in Taqqabum -- including two from Moore -- didn't show "any hesitation or doubt" about their mission and their determination to win, Cole said.
Asked what would constitute victory, Cole said, "A functioning Iraqi government that can defend itself."
American soldiers, he said, "do believe in what they're doing. They do see conditions getting better. They see more Iraqis in the fight. American soldiers like the idea of spreading freedom. It's something they've been doing for more than 100 years."
Delegation meets with leaders
Cole was part of a bipartisan congressional delegation that included four Republicans and two Democrats, including one Democrat who opposed the war, he said. The trip was led by Rep. John Kline, R-Minn.
The lawmakers met with Gen. George Casey, commander of multinational forces in Iraq; Gen. Martin Dempsey, commander of the multinational security transition command; and other U.S. military and Iraqi civilian leaders. The congressmen also had lunch with U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad.
When the congressmen traveled to Taqqabum, Marines who had been injured by a roadside bomb were being brought in, he said.
"As dangerous and as difficult as it is," Cole said, the U.S. has sustained fewer casualties in Iraq than in any other sustained conflict.
"We can't afford for Iraq to fail," Cole said, adding that it would validate what terrorists and insurgents there "think about America -- that we don't have the stomach to stay. It happened in Somalia; it happened in Lebanon."
The next step in Iraq is the Dec. 15 parliamentary elections for a government that will be in place for four years and provide some continuity. Cole said he is optimistic that many of the Sunnis "who are a big element of the insurgency will lay down their arms and join the political process."
In the U.S., he said, "we'll continue to have to debate" the American involvement. He said members of the Bush administration understand they must continue to explain to the American people what the goals are and what progress is being made. Cole said the administration has a series of speeches planned.
Some of the more recent speeches by President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney, however, have been seen as partisan rebukes of those who are questioning the war and the reasons for getting into it, and have been met with sharp reactions from Democrats.
Cole said his trips to Iraq have been helpful to him.
"You get some perspective and you get some credibility when you talk about" the issues involved in the country, he said.
Ellie
By Chris Casteel
The Oklahoman
WASHINGTON - Rep. Tom Cole got to sleep in Baghdad last weekend.
After making his fifth trip to Iraq in three years, Cole, R-Moore, said the fact that six congressmen were allowed to stay the night in the capital "spoke volumes" about the progress being made in security. In his previous trips, he has had to leave
"They did give us body armor and a helmet to have beside the bed" at the palace once used by Saddam Hussein, Cole said.
But Cole said, "Each time I go there, there are more Iraqis doing more for themselves."
There are 212,000 Iraqis serving in about 100 battalions and police forces, he said. That is now more than the 150,000 multinational forces present in Iraq, Cole said.
And though he predicted a "serious drawdown" of American troops next year, Cole said the United States will have to keep significant forces to help the fledgling democracy take shape in Iraq and allow for some continuity in the government.
Getting Americans to remain patient and committed is going to require political leaders to explain continuously what's at stake in the country and the region, Cole said.
"This is an expensive process, in lives and money," he said in an interview. "You have to convince the American people that it's in their interest. And it is."
Iraqis question resolution
Cole left for Iraq on Nov. 19, the day after the House engaged in a fierce debate about a resolution to pull U.S. troops from Iraq immediately.
Republicans offered the resolution in response to Rep. John Murtha's unexpected call for removing the nation's troops.
The resolution, which Democrats said distorted Murtha's intent, only got three votes in support.
Cole said the Marines and the Iraqis he met with in Iraq had heard about the resolution and the debate and "wanted to understand what it was ... was the American commitment still there," he said.
"They like the outcome of the vote," he said.
Aside from the partisan exchanges and the barbs, he said, the bottom line was that over 403 members of the House voted not to remove U.S. troops immediately.
The Marines he met with in Taqqabum -- including two from Moore -- didn't show "any hesitation or doubt" about their mission and their determination to win, Cole said.
Asked what would constitute victory, Cole said, "A functioning Iraqi government that can defend itself."
American soldiers, he said, "do believe in what they're doing. They do see conditions getting better. They see more Iraqis in the fight. American soldiers like the idea of spreading freedom. It's something they've been doing for more than 100 years."
Delegation meets with leaders
Cole was part of a bipartisan congressional delegation that included four Republicans and two Democrats, including one Democrat who opposed the war, he said. The trip was led by Rep. John Kline, R-Minn.
The lawmakers met with Gen. George Casey, commander of multinational forces in Iraq; Gen. Martin Dempsey, commander of the multinational security transition command; and other U.S. military and Iraqi civilian leaders. The congressmen also had lunch with U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad.
When the congressmen traveled to Taqqabum, Marines who had been injured by a roadside bomb were being brought in, he said.
"As dangerous and as difficult as it is," Cole said, the U.S. has sustained fewer casualties in Iraq than in any other sustained conflict.
"We can't afford for Iraq to fail," Cole said, adding that it would validate what terrorists and insurgents there "think about America -- that we don't have the stomach to stay. It happened in Somalia; it happened in Lebanon."
The next step in Iraq is the Dec. 15 parliamentary elections for a government that will be in place for four years and provide some continuity. Cole said he is optimistic that many of the Sunnis "who are a big element of the insurgency will lay down their arms and join the political process."
In the U.S., he said, "we'll continue to have to debate" the American involvement. He said members of the Bush administration understand they must continue to explain to the American people what the goals are and what progress is being made. Cole said the administration has a series of speeches planned.
Some of the more recent speeches by President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney, however, have been seen as partisan rebukes of those who are questioning the war and the reasons for getting into it, and have been met with sharp reactions from Democrats.
Cole said his trips to Iraq have been helpful to him.
"You get some perspective and you get some credibility when you talk about" the issues involved in the country, he said.
Ellie