Peace in Iraq could suddenly be around the corner. The US's authority to enter Iraq expires at the end of this year, and Iraq may not need us anymore.If the war ends this way, it could seal this Iraq war as the worst foreign policy blunder in American history. An end to the war may sound like great news, and it is for most people. Our troops are coming home. We can save the $11B/month we spend in Iraq. But you won't see Bush saying "Mission Accomplished." Iraq doesn't need us because they may get all of the support they need from Iran, their former enemy that is now their ally.
This kind of peace could be very bad for Mr. McCain. He would claim that his surge was responsible for any small improvements in Iraq. He might even be helped by a worsening situation in Iraq. Scared people tend to vote Republican. If Iraq suddenly turns peaceful AND Pro-Iranian, though, we will have no need for a war hero president. American attention will turn more aggressively inward to jobs and teh economy, and historically, this means they will vote Democrat.
Worse for Mssrs Bush and McCain is that an abrupt, Iran facilitated, peace in Iraq will conclusively prove their foreign policy a failure by even Conservative standards. George Bush and John McCain's foreign policy has been guided by the Neo-Conservative belief that American style democracy is so good that, if tried in one middle eastern country, it would be a success that would be irresistible to the rest. Once democratic, the people would be free to want what everyone wants, to have American style freedom and be America's friends. Unfortunately, freedom and democracy means people can choose what they want from themselves and not everyone wants to live like American religious conservatives. In fact, democracy in Iraq could free Iraqis to build closer relationships with Iran, their neighbor and our enemy.
Apparently, middle eastern religious conservatives want to live like good Muslims. Religious conservatives in the US are the evangelical Christians that put Bush in power. In the middle east, religious conservatives gave Hamas control of the Palestinian Authority and Iran influence over Iraq. Bush's war has helped our enemies' enemies befriend/control each other. Iran and Iraq once hated us AND each other. Now, they may be on the verge of loving each other. Bush and McCain will have successfully spent Billions of dollars and thousands of American lives to help our enemies achieve THEIR goals in Iraq NOT ours.
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