BRIEFLY NOTED: Obama's Iraq Problem

From the New Yorker: George Packer on why Obama may have to recalibrate his Iraq policy to reflect new realities on the ground.

Memorial Day 2007

• Click here for the CNN datebase of coalition casualties in the Iraq War.

The National Guard is Strained, Not Obama

When Senator Barack Obama mistakenly overstated the number of deaths from last weekend's awful tornadoes in Kansas, the usual suspects wasted no time pouncing on him for the error.

"Ten thousand people died - an entire town destroyed," Obama said, late in his speech. "Turns out that the National Guard in Kansas only had 40 per cent of its equipment and they are having to slow down the recovery process."

In reality, Obama was making an important point about how the Iraq War is needlessly draining National Guard resources that are intended to be used in exactly the sort of situation we see in Kansas. Or New Orleans, for that matter.

Yet to hear mainstream media spin this, the real story here is that Barack Obama made a mistake.

"He overstated by a factor of one thousand the number of deaths from the tornado in Greenberg, Kansas," said one pill-popping conservative radio host. "They're saying he's just tired. He's just tired out there, a little fatigued."

Let us not be distracted. It is a fact that the endless stream of National Guard units sent to Iraq deplete the vital human and material assets that are so essential to saving lives and helping communities struck by natural disasters.

The real story here is that the mainstream media prefers to pick apart candidates for innocent verbal missteps instead of focusing on the truth: Resources spent on Iraq War are sorely missed here at home, and will be even more sorely missed should we suffer another devastating hurricane season.

As for the mistake, Obama understands well that it won't be the last time this happens.

"There are going to be times when I get tired," he said. "There are going to be times when I get weary. There are going to be times when I make mistakes."

In a presidential field of career politicians who relentlessly polish themselves in their quests for more power, we ought to remember that at least one candidate is a real human being with a sincere and heartfelt desire to take this country in a new direction. Obama should be applauded for his humility. Meanwhile, let's make sure that the next time disaster strikes an American community, the victims have access to every resource they need.

Obama Responds to Bush's Veto

"With one stroke of his pen, President Bush has stubbornly ignored the will of the American people, the majority of Congress and, most disturbingly, the realities on the ground in Iraq.

"Now we call upon our Republican colleagues in Congress to help override this veto and acknowledge what the President will not – that there is no military solution to a political conflict that lies at the heart of this civil war.

"Only the Iraqi leadership can make peace, and the best way to pressure them to do so is still a phased withdrawal of American forces with the goal of removing all combat troops from Iraq by March 30th, 2008.

"It is time to end this war so we can bring our troops home and redeploy our forces to help fight the broader struggle against terrorism and other threats of this new century."

-Senator Barack Obama, May 1st, 2007

Senator Obama's Antiwar Stance

From the New York Times, an analysis of Senator Obama's antiwar stance, including his proposal to withdraw all combat troops from Iraq by March, 2008.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/26/us/politics/26obama.html?ref=politics

With antiwar sentiment growing daily among American voters, can his position be considered centrist?

Presidential Candidates' Iraq Positions

From The New York Times Online, here are the major candidates positions on Iraq from 2002 to present.

http://www.nytimes.com/ref/us/politics/IRAQPOSITIONS.html

The Iraq Authorization Vote

Democratic candidates have spent a lot of time lately explaining or defending their 2002 vote on whether to authorize President Bush to wage war in Iraq.

Both Hillary Clinton and John Edwards initially voted to support Bush in his war efforts. Clinton explains that she would never have given authorization, knowing what she knows now.

In 2002, Senator Obama opposed authorizing the war in Iraq, maintaining that even in 2002, ample information was available to cast doubt on the Iraq policy.

As the U.S. escalates or "surges" in Iraq, how will these initial Iraq authorization votes effect the credibility of both Democratic and Republican candidates?