Posted on May 18, 2015
COL Ted Mc
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From "The Press-Enterprise"

http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_IRAQ_WAR_MISTAKE?SITE=CARIE

White House hopefuls agree: Iraq war a mistake

WASHINGTON (AP) -- A dozen years later, American politics has reached a rough consensus about the Iraq War: It was a mistake.

Politicians hoping to be president rarely run ahead of public opinion. So it's a revealing moment when the major contenders for president in both parties find it best to say that 4,491 Americans and countless Iraqis lost their lives in a war that shouldn't have been waged.

Many people have been saying that for years, of course. Polls show most of the public have judged the war a failure by now. Over time, more and more GOP politicians have allowed that the absence of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq undermined Republican President George W. Bush's rationale for the 2003 invasion.

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What might seem a hard truth for a nation to acknowledge has become the safest thing for an American politician to say - even Bush's brother.

EDITORIAL COMMENT:- Two years ago you would have been called a traitor for voicing the opinions that the current candidates for nomination for election to the office of President of the United States of America are saying publicly.
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Responses: 4
MAJ Robert (Bob) Petrarca
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It's over, it's done with, Bush has been out of office for 7 years and it's in the history books. Hillary, the queen of Benghazi voted for it (oh yes, "reluctantly" as she twists it), Jeb's still not quite sure what he would have done (chuckle) other than backpedalling to cover bro's behind. Chris Christie is still trying to literally get over the GW bridge and was Ted Cruz even born yet??

How in Zeus's toilet bowl will this make a bit of difference in the upcoming debacle of a presidential election. If these idiots are more worried about this than everything else going on that is actually, wait for it, RELEVANT to the current world situation (OK, arguments can be made that the Iraq war has something to do with it but it's water under the bridge at this point) then How will they address real issues?

Do they make body armor strong enough to deflect blame throwers??
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SGT Jeremiah B.
SGT Jeremiah B.
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Here's the part where everyone falls over themselves to distance themselves from a politically toxic asset. We'll see more of this.

In a lot of ways though, it IS relevant. Americans want to know we're not going to spend more blood and treasure on another pointless failed conflict.

I'm personally keenly interested in where the candidates stand on Iraq. I'm also not that interested in letting the politicians who voted for it off the hook.

On the plus side, Jeb showed his true colors by making an affirmative statement and then half-assed backpedaling and pandering when he realized voters were looking at him like he'd lost his damn mind.
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COL Ted Mc
COL Ted Mc
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GySgt Michael L. - Gunny; When "the government" is no longer accountable to either "the law" or "the governed" you have a society that strongly resembles an "aristocracy".

When gaining place in "the government" has strong links to belonging to "The Right Families" you have a society that strongly resembles a "hereditary aristocracy".
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SGT David T.
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One thing we always need to remember about leadership at any level is that we never have all of the information that we need. We make decisions based on what we have at the time and live the consequences . At the time I felt the invasion was a bad idea due to the fact that we had not finished operations in Afghanistan before invading Iraq. That was from a military perspective though. The decision to use force is a political one and not my decision to make.
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SGM Senior Adviser, National Communications
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Hindsight is often more accurate than Foresight.
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Captain hindsight
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