A Fools Errand – Or Why The General Embarrasses Me

The testimony provided to Congress by General Petraeus over the last few days has embarrassed and saddened me. I saw a dedicated, professional officer focused on his mission but I also saw something else that I wish I had never seen. I saw a soldier letting down his soldiers in the most basic way.

As I watched General Petraeus brief members of the Congress and the Senate I saw a soldier doing his duty and presenting the situation in Iraq in simple, stark military terminology but I also saw an officer who, in spite of what I believe are the best of good intentions, is letting his soldiers down in the most basic way. This was brought home to me with laser clarity as I listened to his very simple response to Senator Warner's question; Is the war in Iraq making us safer at home? The Generals answer was very telling. “I don't know.” The very fact that he said that so simply made me realize that he was at that very moment coming to realize how badly he had and was letting his soldiers down. Simply put, no leader would ever lead his or her soldiers into combat without knowing two basic things. First, that the battle can and will be won and second that it is for the defense of the constitution and the nation. (Please note that I did not use the divisive and personally distasteful term “homeland”.)

There is no doubt in my mind that if General Petraeus believed that the war in Iraq was making America safer he would have unhesitatingly stated so unequivocally and succinctly in response to the Senators question. He didn't and that told the rest of the story.

In 2003 George W. Bush took our nation to war under false pretenses. He did this in spite of the advice of senior Generals and he in fact fired those officers who dared to speak against the invasion. As a result of his bloated ego and lack of world view and understanding we entered a conflict we were ill prepared to execute and unprepared to see through. Since that preemptive invasion the mission in Iraq has continued to morph and change with the whims of that self same President. All along more and more Americans and Iraqi's die as our nations blood and wealth is poured into the deserts of Iraq. And our once seemingly bright though certainly tarnished image in the world has been decimated.

I believe General Patraeus' testimony should serve to remind us of a few things. It should serve to remind us all of how we came to be where we are in Iraq. It should also serve to remind of where we stand in the world and how very difficult it will be to both extract forces from Iraq and to rebuild our credibility and honor. Most importantly it should serve to remind our Congress that in 2006 we put them in office to fulfill their constitutional duty of defending the constitution and that they must exercise their constitutional duty of checks and balances and force the president to extract our forces from Iraq in the most expedient and safe manner possible. No we cannot walk away and yes we must leave a stable Iraq but that requires both a plan and leadership. This president has failed and continues to fail to provide either of those things. It therefore falls to our duly elected Congress to provide both. We Americans, whatever our political leanings, must realize that, yes George W. Bush and his cohorts got us into this mess but it will take the will of the people holding our elected officials accountable to get us out of it. It is not going to be easy. It is not going to be pretty and neither the left nor the right will be completely satisfied but we must leave a stable Iraq and yes that is possible.

Those Are The Sergeant Major's Thoughts On That.