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Born at the Crest of the Empire

Monday, April 10, 2006

Now Colin Powell talks of "serious mistakes" in Iraq

I really think alot of this is reputation protecting, that those who admit errors first can point the first finger at others. Of note, this was in the prepared remarks, it wasn't something that just spilled out.
"We made some serious mistakes in the immediate aftermath of the fall of Baghdad," Powell told a crowd of thousands at the McCormick Place conference. "We didn't have enough troops on the ground. We didn't impose our will. And as a result, an insurgency got started, and . . . it got out of control."

posted by mikevotes at 9:01 AM

11 Comments:

  • Where was this Colin Powell 3 1/2 years ago. He was playing the role of "the good soldier." Sometimes a "good soldier" has to have the prescience to identify the real enemies of a free America are corrupt, ruthless and dishonest leaders.

    Powell should have resigned in 2003. He traded his honor and integrity for a cabinet post, and now he's just another hand-wringing, CYA politician.

    By Blogger -epm, at 9:45 AM  

  • Too little, too late.

    Who was a more loyal soldier?

    Zinni and Shinseki or Powell?

    By Blogger Bravo 2-1, at 10:17 AM  

  • I'm not a big Powell fan, I just found this pretty interesting. He's long been known as a "good political knife fighter" and I figure he's pretty connected with the generals, so if he's starting to try to distance himself, that tells me that the generals are telling him its over.

    Mike

    By Blogger mikevotes, at 10:22 AM  

  • Powell needs to do more than just point out the mistakes already identified by so many others... he needs to lay the blame at the feet of the civilian leaders responsible for this debacle... starting with himself.

    By Blogger -epm, at 10:56 AM  

  • Yeah, but I think you're pushing a more honest motivation than his real intent.

    This isn't meant to help or change anything. It's just political.

    Notice he doesn't really pin this on anybody specific. His goal is just to get the blame off of himself.

    He might need some support from those people later.

    Mike

    By Blogger mikevotes, at 11:06 AM  

  • I'm still waiting for Powell to give an explanation over why US Wheat Associates complaints, about the Australian wheat exporter’s $300 million kickbacks to Saddam, were quickly buried and forgotten - for a while at least.
    There is documentary evidence that Powell knew the Australians were funneling funds into pre war Iraq, and not just from the US wheat lobby. The issue of knowingly funding the enemy, or allowing it to happen, ranks alongside that of the pre 9/11 plans.

    By Blogger Cartledge, at 11:23 AM  

  • I loved him in Mars Attacks!

    By Blogger JUSIPER, at 12:32 PM  

  • I know nothing about that cartledge.

    Mike

    By Blogger mikevotes, at 1:20 PM  

  • Mike, I think a lot of generals have known it's over since around the time of Murtha.

    By Blogger Bravo 2-1, at 2:40 PM  

  • I agree. I'm more interested in the politics of this. Because every politician who can claim some distance from Iraq is disowning it, and that tells me that the Republican circle in Washington is finally realizing its unwinnable. The belief is so strong that they're willing to stake their political futures on the move.

    I think that indicates a big shift.

    Mike

    By Blogger mikevotes, at 4:06 PM  

  • By most accounts, Powell has a voice of dissent in the administration during the lead up to the Iraq war. He tried to do what he could from the inside, but was mostly shut out.

    By Blogger Charlie, at 8:47 AM  

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