Bremer Now Defends U.S. Actions in Iraq

[Norquist Nemesis]

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/B/BREMER?SITE=FLMYR&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

By KATHY BARKS HOFFMAN
Associated Press Writer





EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) -- The former U.S. administrator in Iraq on Tuesday defended American actions there - a day after faulting troop strength following the ouster of Saddam Hussein.

L. Paul Bremer, appointed by President Bush as the head of the Iraq occupation, said Monday that U.S. forces failed to stop widespread looting after toppling Hussein, and "paid a big price for not stopping it because it established an atmosphere of lawlessness."

During a speech Tuesday at Michigan State University, he said his remarks had been somewhat distorted by the media.

"We certainly had enough (troops) going into Iraq, because we won the war in a very short three weeks," Bremer said.

<snip>

Isn't Bremer Bush's cousin? I guess Bremer's comments yesterdays didn't bode well for the family unit.

[tridim]

1. flippity

floppity

[Neshanic]

18. Floppity flop flop. I love when Al does that on his show

[Gemini Cat]

2. Huh.

Flip flopper.

[kokomo]

3. He awoke this morning with a severed horse head in his bed!

:wow:

[agates]

4. So who do you think made the phone call?

The call to tell Bremer to fix this and get with the program, or else? Cheney? Rummy? Card? Is this a White House call or a Pentagon call? Inquiring minds want to know.

[Eye and Monkey]

6. Some low level functionary. Bremer's "out of the loop".

They told him to retract, restate, then shut the hell up or he WON'T be getting that position at Halliburton.

[wabeewoman]

20. If only

we could get our hands on one of those calls. Rove chewing out Bremer or whoever strays from the party line...

[Trillo]

5. Did the U.S. government spend 200 Billion in 3 weeks in Iraq?

"Mission Accomplished."

[pacalo]

7. I liked this part of the article...

More than a dozen people were escorted outside during Bremer's speech. One woman accused Bremer of being a war criminal and another asked, "What do you get when you go into a country and kill innocent people?"

Several people also chanted "Paul Bremer, you can't hide. We charge you with genocide."

"I'll tell you one thing, if people had behaved like this in Saddam Hussein's Iraq, they would be dead," Bremer said at one point.

But, Bremer, what about all the hundreds of other dictators in the world? We going to fight them, too?

[pinniped]

12. This piece of shit still thinks like a dictator:

"I'll tell you one thing, if people had behaved like this in Saddam Hussein's Iraq, they would be dead," Bremer said at one point.

[kayell]

24. I can hear the longing in their voices when Repugs say things like that

"I'll tell you one thing, if people had behaved like this in Saddam Hussein's Iraq, they would be dead," Bremer said at one point.

[jobycom]

8. Somebody sent him a picture of the editor of the National Enquirer

You remember him, the guy who published the picture of Jenna Bush falling down drunk? The first Anthrax victim? (All the rest were enemies of Bush, too, including two senators whose deaths would have given control back to the Republicans.)

[SoCalDem]

9. Is his family being held in a "secure location"?

"We certainly had enough (troops) going into Iraq, because we won the war in a very short three weeks," Bremer said."


Well, J.Paul...if we had enough, why are we still getting our soldiers killed daily.. That does not sound like a "win" to me :eyes:

[kokomo]

10. But in their upside down world, losing is winning!

[coalition_unwilling]

23. Wrong--We won the opening skirmish in a very short three weeks

Bremer's turnabout and then subsequent flip-flop back doesn't really surprise me, as everyone in this administration fails to understand the distinction between tactics and strategy.

The fall of Baghdad was a tactical victory, but a strategic catastrophe. (Same with the Tet Offensive in '68: U.S. tactical victory but strategic defeat.)

[pinniped]

11. The war is over?

He came back to his senses after it was revealed his pardon was in danger.

[Tight_rope]

13. LMBAO...they all lie so much!

[0007]

14. Remeber that song "Mule Train"?

"Clippity cloppity through the mud and rain"

[robbedvoter]

15. he also retracted his prediction that 911 would happen (and Bushco

will be caught pants down)

[i_c_a_White_Ghost]

16. Flip-Flop

[Rockholm]

17. Wishy Washy Flippy Floppy

Oh come on...THEY ARE LIARS!!!!!!!!

[UpInArms]

19. Cinci Post: Now he tells us

http://www.cincypost.com/2004/10/06/editb100604.html

The former top American official in Iraq has acknowledged what in retrospect now seems obvious: We did not deploy enough troops, and we should have acted to stop the looting that followed the fall of Saddam Hussein.

"We paid a big price for not stopping it because it established an atmosphere of lawlessness. We did not have enough troops on the ground," Paul Bremer, the head of the occupation authority until June, told an insurance-industry gathering this week.

In the spring of 2003, it was an article of faith in the Bush administration that the number of troops was adequate for the job, and it lashed back harshly at those, like Army Chief of Staff Gen. Eric Shinseki, who suggested otherwise.

...more worth a read...

[PATRICK]

21. In hindsight

Bremer realizes he has been a horse's a&&. Kind of bad for his upcoming book when he has to apologize for a positive insight.

In the old days he would dress in sackcloth on edging along on his bloody knees, flagellate himself all the way to Crawford Texas where he might be forgiven.

[Supersedeas]

22. and Bremer appears from the woodshed to say this?

[flobee1kenobi]

25. This almost sounds like a threat!

"I'll tell you one thing, if people had behaved like this in Saddam Hussein's Iraq, they would be dead," Bremer said at one point.

Does * like the Saddam way so much that he plans to adopt it?

[Supersedeas]

26. ironic isn't it--great post and quote flobee