Iraq and Roll - Out

Military analyst Fred Kaplan late this week reviewed a number of ideas being floated in Washington which address the question How Do We Win In Iraq?

There is no good answer, it seems, except another very different question -- "How do we keep a pullout from looking like a surrender?" Kaplan concludes:

The basic situation is this: As long as the Iraqis ratify the constitution and form a new government (however shaky both may be), the Bush administration seems determined to start a major troop reduction next year to minimize the war's impact on our own 2006 elections—regardless of a withdrawal's impact on Iraq. The question that seriously needs addressing is no longer how to win, but how to keep a pullout from looking like surrender.

It's a thoughtful piece that analyzes the pros and cons, as objectively as may be possible, of proposals being advanced by various sober-minded experts, with links.