Red Queen Perino declares 'Victory' in Iraq
Just like the Red Queen in Alice's Adventures Through the Looking Glass, White House spokesperson Dana Perino is determined that words will mean what she wants them to mean!
Especially when it comes to declaring "victory" in Iraq.
Look at this exchange in today's White House press briefing:
- Q: Can you remind us again why this agreement is not the timetable that the president fought so hard against? […]
PERINO: This is a mutually agreed to agreement. [HC comment: As opposed to-- ?] And that’s what one of the things that is different about an arbitrary date for withdrawal when you say you’re going to leave win or lose. We believe that the conditions are such now that we are able to celebrate the victory that we’ve had so far and establish…a strategic framework agreement.
Brilliant -- I wish we'd nicknamed Perino "The Red Queen" long ago; it so perfectly suits what she does.
It looks to me like the US is finally going for what was suggested years ago: declare victory and leave.
The important point is the "leave" bit. That is the point we need to concentrate on.
Many have said, notably Shirin, that the US will never leave Iraq voluntarily. That is true.
If they do leave Iraq under the present agreement, which seems to me likely, it will not be voluntarily. This agreement was not what the US wanted, which is why the difference between what Pierino et al are saying publicly and what they are signing. They are embarrassed, even ashamed, to admit to what they have signed. It has to be excused and explained.
On the other hand, I wouldn't be surprised if Iraq did pull out of the agreement. It was always the tendency of Iraqi thought. No possible agreement is really acceptable. The more the US threatens to withdraw on 1st January, the less likely it is that the agreement will be approved by Iraq in the end.
I don't think it matters at all what the detail of Obama's thought compared to that of Bush or Clinton might be. It really doesn't matter at all; it is not the US which is making the decision. The initiative is with Iraq, and Iraq is calling the shots.
That's quite a Palin-esque quote, both in syntax and "deny reality" content. Perino seems surprisingly incompetent for the frontwoman of the Bush operation. Snow-balling (a la Tony Snow) is the _only_ area in which it has _not_ been either incompetent or all-too-efficiently destructive (a la Dick Cheney).
"That's quite a Palin-esque quote, both in syntax and "deny reality" content."
I was thinking exactly the same thing!
The US has created, at tremendous financial and human cost, an Islamic Republic closely aligned with Iran with secret police, secret prisons and summary executions. Sounds like victory to me. Let's celebrate!
Actually, I suspect that the victory that Perino was referring to was more local, and includes the avoidance of the impeachment of her bosses for the crimes they committed. It looks like they actually got away with it -- lies, war, torture, everything. And in the process a lot of money was given to a lot of undeserving people. They're all winners, after all.
"This is a mutually agreed to agreement. [HC comment: As opposed to-- ?]"
A mutually agreed to DISagreement, perhaps?
I think we're all interested in seeing the US leave Iraq as soon as possible. And no US president is going to want to be seen "losing" a war (especially one where the terms of victory or loss seem quite so murky.)
So what really is the problem if for whatever purposes an explicit timetable for full withdrawal is framed by some flack as a victory? Seems like Obama's job just got a lot easier.