Iraqis Kicking Americans Out, Or Americans Handing Iraq Back To The Iraqis?
Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki is saying that his government is ready for American forces to leave the green zone in Iraq. The spin from the media on this development is something along the lines of “Americans getting ousted,” but is that really accurate? Are Americans getting ousted or is one of the goals the Bush administration has had in Iraq since the first day of the war finally coming to fruition?
I think it’s the latter. President Bush himself promised that as Iraqis stand up America will stand down. It has always been our goal to develop and then protect an elected and representative civilian government in Iraq until the time when that government felt it could stand on its own.
Clearly, that time is drawing nigh. And it’s not a situation where Iraqis are kicking Americans out but rather a situation where we are handing over control of the country to the Iraqis themselves as the Bush administration always intended.
If al-Maliki’s government takes over control of Baghdad as a whole it will be a stunning victory not just for the Bush administration and our troops in Iraq but also for the Iraqis themselves.
