Asked at a New Hampshire campaign stop about possibly staying in Iraq 50 years, John McCain interrupted -- "Make it a hundred" -- then offered a precise analogy to what he envisioned: "We've been in Japan for 60 years. We've been in South Korea for 50 years or so." Lest anyone think he was talking about prolonged war-fighting rather than maintaining a presence in postwar Iraq, he explained: "That would be fine with me, as long as Americans are not being injured or harmed or wounded or killed."He then attacks liberals for making hay over his 100 years comment, implying that it is disingenuous of us to suggest that he is find with our troops being killed in Iraq for 100 years.
And lest anyone persist in thinking he was talking about war-fighting, he told his questioner: "It's fine with me and I hope it would be fine with you if we maintained a presence in a very volatile part of the world."
A couple of responses come to mind here. First of all, I doubt Krauthammer scolded people on his side of the fence when the made up nonsensical responses to Kerry's statement that we need to fight a more sensitive war on terror. Remember the humor that line provoked, as Republican Pundit after Republican Pundit envisioned a President who would be sending the Terrorists poems and flowers?
And, frankly, the criticisms that we might be in Iraq for 100 years are based far more on reality than your sides jabs. McCain has said that he has no intention of pulling our troops out until we "win." So we will have our troops in Iraq until Americans are not being "injured or harmed or wounded or killed" in the war we seem to be in the middle of. And then, after we've defeated whoever it is we are to defeat in Iraq we will be happy to leave our soldiers in there for 100 years.
Sure sounds like, either way, we aren't pulling our troops out of Iraq any time soon.
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