Hillary Clinton's advisers too gung-ho on Iraq war, critics say

[DeepModem Mom]

NY Daily News: Hillary Clinton's advisers too gung-ho on Iraq war, critics say
BY JAMES GORDON MEEK
DAILY NEWS WASHINGTON BUREAU
Sunday, November 25th 2007

WASHINGTON - Is Hillary Clinton the hawk masquerading as the dove? Some Democrats who know her security advisers fear her war in Iraq will be just as bloody as George Bush's. Party critics foresee an aggressive Clinton administration pressing the fight in Iraq - and possibly in Iran, too. Their dark concerns stem from the stable of hawkish advisers Clinton has recruited for her war council, who helped craft her recent saber-rattling over Iran and Iraq, as well as from her muscular voting record on national security.

By contrast, Barack Obama's war council consists of ex-Clintonistas who were opposed to invading Iraq. "A lot of Obama's advisers thought this was a stupid war in 2002, and a lot of Hillary's advisers thought it was a good idea in 2002," said one Democrat with a national security résumé. "That's the original sin which causes people to make some choices."

"The campaign's advisers reflect a broad spectrum of opinion within the Democratic Party," countered Clinton national security guru Lee Feinstein. "The candidate makes her own decisions about her foreign policy positions." Clinton's wise men are well-known for having been gung-ho about the invasion of Iraq, but highly critical of Bush's bungled occupation. Most, like Sandy Berger and Richard Holbrooke, were top national security aides to her husband, President Bill Clinton. One prominent adviser who opposed the war is former Gen. Wesley Clark.

Richard Clarke, Tony Lake and Susan Rice all worked for Bill Clinton's National Security Council, but they opposed invading Iraq - and they now advise Obama. The candidates haven't been clear about how fast they'll bring G.I.s home, but Clinton is viewed skeptically by some insiders. "I don't think anyone in the party thinks she'll significantly reduce the occupation in Iraq," said a Democratic operative who is not aligned with any campaign.

This all rings true to Boston University foreign policy expert Andrew Bacevich, a retired Army officer who doubts Clinton will put a tourniquet on the bleeding. "She is not a peace candidate," said the anti-war scholar, whose soldier son was killed fighting in Iraq this year. "To vote for Hillary Clinton is to vote for a very hawkish Democrat." Clinton recently wrote in Foreign Affairs magazine that she'll keep troops in Iraq to target "Al Qaeda in Iraq and other terrorist organizations in the region." But she didn't explain who those "other" terrorists are....

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Clinton's camp insists her voting record matches Obama's on national security. But she voted for the Iraq resolution in 2002, before he was elected to the Senate. In September, Clinton cast a vote - which Obama skipped - to label Iran's Revolutionary Guards a terror group, giving Bush license to designate them sponsors of terrorism....

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/2007/11/25/2007-11-25_hillary_clintons_advisers_too_gungho_on_-1.html

[AlertLurker]

1. Nice Headline - Iraq, War AND China...

Nothing like loading the question...