Was Iraq a mistake?
extra credit question– Did Bush “lie”?
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Should Trump Have Said Iraq Was a Mistake and That Bush Lied?
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Yes. Yes, it was a mistake. A big mistake.
bush did not lie about wmd
saddam was using wmd to kill kurds, google the photos if you wish
never understood the “lie” bullshit
Not until Obama got involved and f#@&ed it all up.
That’s a complicated question. Was the concept a mistake? NO. We picked a piece of real estate and the bad guys came to us.
Then we tied our War Fighters hands with dumb ass ROE’s and too many died.
Because of the latter it was a mistake.
Yes.
Bush/The World had bad/old intel. He did not lie. The left’s rants made him sound like he did.
Bang
Exactly.
Better to fight in Baghdad than Bangor or Boston.
When US went after Sadam H a Saudi lab tech here in USA told me it was the worst thing that could happen. Sadam had the whole area under control and if he is removed it will be chaos.
http://newswithviews.com/Nelson/kelleigh272.htm
Did they lie, NO. Was it a mistake, in hindsight yes. I think it has been shown that you can’t expect 7th century, criminal monsters to behave in a manner that would allow a democracy to flourish.
No & No
However the big mistake regarding the whole situation was allowing the leftards to get the vapors over a little water or female soldiers posing with a pile of naked criminals. This changed the rules of engagement for the worse, it’s been a quagmire ever since.
Not dropping a big nuke on Mecca after the 9-11 attack was the biggest mistake.
We’d probably be better off if Saddam were still in power; he might be keeping Iran too busy to fuck with our sailors. Gas prices might be outrageous, though.
Bush didn’t lie about the chemical weapons and such. Could be he just guessed right about that. Saddam had the stuff, sent it to Syria when we invaded.
My son almost got killed over there when his Husky ran over two anti-tank mines stacked one atop the other.
Nuke Mecca!!!!!
NO it was not a mistake to do it.
It was a mistake however, to let Oboingo grow to manhood.
NO they did not lie about WMD
Satellite photos show the convoys to Syria 24 hrs prior to our stomping the sh*t out of the fourth most powerful army in the world.
it would depend on what the goal was. we will never know the true reasons why Bush went into Iraq. even if Bush told me why I would not trust his words.
from a rational standpoint it was a big mistake but if you wanted to start WWIII or destabilize the middle east it is a huge victory.
remember Bush and most of the GOP are not even close to conservative, they are all establishment one world order people so I will venture to say the invasion of Iraq was a success for them.
Iraq was not a Mistake. The WMD was moved by Russia to Syria while we dithered. That is why Pelosi said Impeachment was off the table. she knew
Bush did not lie. It’s been reported (I don’t remember where, but I do remember reading it and I think it was a left site) that WMDs were moved to Syria where they are now being used by ISIS.
We should have gone to Iraq to degrade Al Qaeda but should not have gone after Sadam. We shouldn’t get involved in civil wars (it gets iffy when massive amounts of innocent people are being massacred) It may have been enough for us to stomp around Iraq to put the fear into Sadam (something like Reagan did to Gadafi).
At any rate, we should have NEVER been involved in nation building. It’s not up to us (or any country) to tell other nations how to run their country.
We went there to slap Al Qaeda around because they attacked us. Any more action was unnecessary.
With the benefit of 20/20 hindsight, yes, it was a mistake. But I was for it at the time, just like an overwhelming majority of the rest of the country. Including the lying, hypocritical weasel-ass Democrats.
And no, Bush did not lie. I’m convinced that Saddam had WMD, and they were moved before we got there. In fact, some WMD were actually found, years later, but it was old news, by then. And of course, the MSM didn’t care to report it.
Yes, based on what we were told at the time, yes.
He was wrong, was that a lie, I just dont know.
Our failed meddling in the Middle East, for the last 50+ years, has been a total and tragic mistake! How are we better off today for that constant and relentless intervention?
I believe it was a mistake. Hussein was a murderous despot, but murderous despots are not that uncommon in that area of the world. Further, I do not believe the Bush adiminstration understood and appreciated the relationships and long term enmity between Sunni, Shia and Kurds which could and and did lead to a civil war and leadership void. I think George H.W. Bush understood this, but his son did not. Finally, I think it unlikely that the U.S. can establish a democracy or representative republic in an area that, for thousands of years, has never known democracy or representative republic types of government. That area has almost always been ruled by kings, warlords and dictators.
Did Iraq have WMDs? Yes, because I consider chemical weapons to be WMDs, and Hussein used chemical weapons on the Kurds. I doubt that Iraq had nuclear weapons or the short term capacity to develop such weapons, although he certainly would have tried. Perhaps George W. Bush did the world a favor by creating a situation in Iraq where an Obama administration could not make a deal where Iraq would ultimately obtain such weapons. I think Bush’s judgment was clouded and incorrect, but Iraq did have WMDs.
For what it is worth, I held this opinion when the U.S. first invaded Iraq, and have not really heard or read anything to change my mind.
1. Yes.
2. No.
Iraq was a mistake. Hussein should have been removed but his government should have remained in power. He did have WMDs he used them and since then they have been found. ISIS has some of them now and the rest are in Syria. bush didn’t lie about the WMDS but he did obfuscate his real intentions. He said it was all about the WMDS, he said nothing about the nation building. So he did tell some half truths. Saudi Arabia is our true enemy. The bush family has been lying to cover up that fact for decades.
Yes
No
Monday morning quarterback-type mistake. But not the wrong decision at the time. And Bush didn’t lie.
Yes, it was a mistake
Bush told us what he believed to be plausible, but he was lied to by others. The supposed WMD were already out of Saddam’s hands by the time we went in there having been transported to Syria.
Yes
No
Yes, they did have WMD. We gave them to them. But the salient question still remains why on the earth did Bush invade?
Iraq a mistake? mistake for who?
it was definitely a mistake for the usa as a country and it’s population.
was it a mistake for the nwo bankers? only they can tell you. since the situation has only been allowed to grow worse, I think they think it is accomplishing what they want.
did bush lie? I think bush believed there were wmd’s. it’s not a lie if you believe it. I think he was manipulated.
What BANG said.
No lies on WMD
Do tell, was Viet Nam a mistake? I’m still figuring that one out.
Was Iraq a mistake?
Probably, don’t know enough. What Obama did after what GWB did absolutely was.
extra credit question– Did Bush “lie”?
No. Since so many Dems, including Bill Clinton, openly said that intelligence suggested they did, I’d say GWB also believed it. That’s NOT to say GWB didn’t lie/massage facts to get other related things done, BUT…
UNASKED QUESTION: so what do you think of Trump’s claims?
He’s brilliant at trolling for DEMOCRAT and INDEPENDENT VOTES. He wants to win and knows how to get the votes to win.
No, and no.
No, not a mistake. And no, he didn’t lie about WMD
Was Iraq a mistake? Yes. I agreed with Afghanistan because that’s where Bin Laden was hiding. Iraq never made any sense.
Were there WMD’s? Certainly not of the type and quantity we were told. Nor did we ever find the laboratories capable of creating them.
Bush was relying on intel from the Clinton administration, so if anybody lied, it was Clinton.
They moved their WMD’s to Syria. How else do we explain Syria suddenly having massive amounts of WMD’s?
Was algore lying?
Allbright?
Hillary?
Biden?
John Edwards?
Kerry?
Sandy Bergler?
Reid?
Pelosi?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=odqp40xAGMw
.
“Bush was relying on intel from the Clinton administration, so if anybody lied, it was Clinton.”
That is incorrect. The Bush Administration stated they got the Intel from the British. Even Bush wasn’t dumb enough to trust a liberal.
Was Iraq a mistake?
Yes it was a mistake, look where we are at today. It was one big ass mistake. People forget that Saddam tried to kill Bush Sr., and it was a golden opportunity for Bush to go after him to get even.
Where are these WMD? They were never found. As for “did he lie?” I’d have to say yes, they all lied and started pointing fingers. Oh, Jebbie should have been immune to people whopping on his family by now. Get use to it Jeb, and quit smelling your farts it’s disgusting.
As someone who served over there in the second year of the “war”. Hell yes it was a mistake. My battalion was only supposed to send 300 soldiers. They sent over 1300 because that looks better on the Battalion Commander’s Officer Evaluation Report because 1300 deployed looks much better than 300 deployed.
It turned into a massive spending spree for the Battalion. If you went into the Tactical Operations Center the place was filled to the brim with large screen flat panel televisions. Keep in mind that this was in 2k5.
In addition to that, for the year that I was there, I spent maybe 3 months doing my job. The rest of the time I was babysitting Iraqis on post that were basically given money for doing busy work. For example, dig up the sand here and move it there. Next week, move the sand back.
Don’t even get me started on the State Department fuckups that were running the show. Make no mistake, the military wasn’t in charge, the SoS was.
It was so bad and so corrupt, I actually thought about writing a book when I got out, but I didn’t want to give the left any ammunition.
Did Bush lie, no. Did he run Iraq incompetently, yes.
Enough time has passed to where I can be honest about it. Thank you Mr. Trump for opening up this long overdue conversation.
If you aren’t willing to completely destroy the enemy, don’t bother going to war.
No, but to invest all that money and blood into what would never be a sound strategy from the start .Carving out swath of 2500 miles across the belt of the planet ridding Ghia of the scourge of Pislam would have been a worthwhile endeavor. 1400 years of this shit is enough.
Yeah
Iraq was a huge mistake. Totally caused the Middle East to come unhinged. As much of a tyrant Saadam was, he kept Iran in check as they did him. They pretty much burned themselves out fighting each other over many years.
As for Bush lying? Maybe yes probably no. But I think GW was itching to go into Iraq and finish off his daddy’s invasion since GHW Bush called off the dogs before finishing Iraq off.
Mistake? Yes. Lies? No. One thing I will say is I think Saddam’s assasination attempt on his father in Kuwait was a big motivating factor for Bush attacking Saddam, whether conciously or subconciously.
For the record, I thought the administration and various writers for National Review,Weekly Standard etc made a convincing case for the war and I supported it at the time. In hindsight, I should have been more sceptical. It really bothers me that I was wrong, especially given the thousands of dead Americans, the wounded, and the treasure spent. When I see those Wounded Warrior commercials, I feel a sense of responsibility for their wounds. I thought that perhaps democracy was what the ME really needed and it could help transform the region. Again, wishful thinking. Islam is the poison in that region and until its adhetents see the light, the region is utterly hopeless.
Yes. It served no American purpose. Even if there were WMDs, they couldn’t reach America and Hussein was our erstwhile ally against Iran.
No. The intelligence came from Britain, France, N. Africa, and beyond. Geo. only knew what he was told by the international intelligence community.
They may have lied.
No, Bush didn’t lie. Yes, it was a mistake, in that the American people have been going into places, f***ing things up, then turning tail and running, since Vietnam.
All war is a mistake, unless we plan on winning. Not nation building, but winning the war. Breaking things and killing people until they cry uncle, and the sick culture that led to the war is destroyed.
I think Donald is going after the Bush hater crowd – he could’ve handled it better by saying something like “America’s had enough Bushes – that’s why you’re doing so poorly” – that’s not really his style. God alone knows the heart, mind, and intentions of each person.
Hold the phone Chalupa.
Trump predicted a domestic attack by Osama Bin Laden a couple years before it happened.
Trumps from the private sector. If you apply that same critique and accountability to a politician, then Bush failed to keep us safe.
I think the loaded audience pissed him off though. He seemed pretty aggressive, but he can back those statements up.
Yes, no. The facts since the invasion show there WERE WMDs. Even the NYT reported that fact. They’re certainly no fan of any Republican.
Remember what that filthy piece of detritus LBJ said about Vietnam: “American boys should not go and do what Vietnamese boys should do be doing”. American boys do not need to go and do what native boys should be doing in their own countries, and that included Iraq!
I remember during the Iraq war a demonstration in my town by some ‘Iraqi Immigrant men’ protesting that we were not doing enough fighting and dying for them. They were here safe and sound and we were there not safe and sound! They should have been immediately deported back to the battlefield!
To Chalupa and bang
That’s what I was saying…
…that Trump is trolling
for DEMOCRAT and INDIE VOTES!!!
SC is an OPEN PRIMARY;
that means everyone can vote.
Trump wants to win and he knows how.
Even in a dirty, dirty politics state like SC.
Judge it by 2003, not 2016. Hindsight is easy. And no, he did not lie.
I would say that it was a mistake in the same sense that FDR rounding up and fencing off Japanese Americans out in the desert was a mistake. But that is an easy and lazy thing to say because it means absolutely nothing. So I won’t say it.
AT THE TIME, it seemed like a very reasonable, necessary and justified course of action, in order to protect the nation from further hostility and from the potential for the asymmetrical warfare of saboteurs.
As with FDR, so with GWB.
Condemning those in the past for not having the 20/20 hindsight we possess only because we live so long after the fact is a petty game for halfwits and punks.
Iraq was a mistake. Saddam knew how these peoples’ minds work. They need an authoritarian father figure. I doubt Bush lied, but we should have left them alone with our finger on the trigger, ready to support Israel.
Mistakes were made, starting with the use of “WMDs” as a reason to go in. I even told my wife and her liberal sister & husband before the invasion that WMDs,by their very nature, are easy to move, easy to hide and hard to prove. Man I wish I’d videoed that conversation.
Going to war in Iraq was not a mistake in as much as we needed to make an example of a muslime country and Afghanistan was too remote and uninteresting to serve the purpose. Further, had Saddam chosen to use AQ or other jihadists against us, he has a lot of oil to use for funding them (remember he’d already bought off many in the UN).
Going to war in Iraq was not a mistake because we’d already weakened them too much with Desert Storm to be an effective counterweight to Iran. But, the notion that a “democratic” Iraq, with a Shia majority loyal to Iran would be a counterweight was just stupid.
Going to war in Iraq after six months of public debate, thus giving all the time in the world to move the WMDs, plan an insurgency, and stockpile weapons caches was a mistake.
Going to war in Iraq for any purpose other than securing the oil infrastructure and installing a US loyal strong man to replace Saddam was a mistake. Occupying the cities instead of keeping the Baath party as a proxy there was a mistake. Failing to enforce a 50 mile deep “free fire zone” along the Iranian border was a mistake.
Did Bush lie? Well, he’s a politician so that’s a given. Did he lie specifically about WMDs? Exagerated maybe, but even the NYT now admits there were forbidden WMDs in Iraq. And the Obozo regime was wringing it’s hands about WMDs in Syria (where Iraq’s WMDs went according to many accounts) fairly recently.
Bush wasted the victory by an inherently simple and stupid policy after it was won. So, in hindsight it could be said that going to war in Iraq, with a leader like Bush WAS a mistake.
No, no and no!
The first Iraq war was a mistake.
First, they went in for the wrong reasons (fake babies dying in incubators).
Second, they didn’t finish the job.
Ten years later W. needed an excuse to finish what his father didn’t.
Please stop nation building. Countries that have not become democracies on own are not going to do it because we tell them to.
Yes, Yes and Yes. See above.
Was Iraq a mistake? – No and then Yes. The no: The war was an extension of the first Gulf war. There are too many things to list here and I feel no one would read it anyway. The Yes: mistakes were made in the beginning that could not be reversed. Some of the people in charge were idiots. I feel some thought the Iraqis would be throwing rose petals before the victory parade. There was no understanding of Islam and how those inbreed bastards think and feel.
Did Bush “lie”? No. and everyone knows he didn’t. The whole lie story started when the left needed it for the up coming elections. I no longer have the web addy to all the democrat quotes about the WMD and how Saddam had to be stopped.
It has been a long time since 2001 and the lead up to the 2003 invasion. Taking all of that time to reflect my answers remain the same.
After the bump.
If he is looking to ensure that I vote for him he his better off not going there. If he is trying to bring in some libs or conspiracy thinkers then it might work out for him. I don’t think it is a winning position.
Like it or not, Trump needs to say what HE thinks, not what he calculates. . . there are plenty of “politicians” in this already.
Should he have said it? No. What I think happened was Trump was being Trump. I think he was annoyed at the stacked GOPe audience booing him and wanted to poke both them and Jeb! in the eye.
1. The Iraq was was not a mistake. The mistake was when Obama pulled all troops out, not giving the new Iraqi Gov. a chance to stableize .
2. Bush did not lie. Western intelligence, at the time, agreed that “Sodam” had WMDs.
3Trump pissed me off when he said Iraq (Cont.)
(Why the scare quotes?)
Yes, he did. Bush & Co. had already decided to invade Iraq and were casting about for justification. Bush+ stated as established fact that there was a conspiracy between Saddam Hussein and al-Qaeda. But that was not an established fact then nor was it ever possible to verify it afterwards. This was not the only bogus justification offered, and in my book saying that something is true when you know that it is not is a lie. Bush lied.
Sure. Iraq was a mistake, and Bush did lie.
was a mistake and Bush lied. Trump is a BLABBERMOUTH. Play the Jackie Gleason clip again. I don’t care who it pisses off.
The disappearing “Post Comment” is pissing me off. Seven lines and it disappears! Am I alone with this problem?
Rush.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NpfZxDfOY4o
.
The Iraq War was brilliantly done. Our military went to that country as human shields to attract the worst terrorists and efficiently kill them. This would have lead to great demoralization of the enemy and victory for us if continued robustly.
Iraq is a geographic wedge, and as minute amounts of freedom and capitalism bloomed, horrible pressure was placed on our enemies in Saudi Arabia (this was a way to harm the land of 9/11 pilots) and Iran. The Green movement in Iran would have toppled that evil government. The oil produced by Iraq and the freedom of satellite tv was already putting pressure on Saudi Arabia to change.
George Bushes’ achilles heel is his need to be fair. When he handed off control of the war from the Pentagon to the State Department that’s when the tempo halted and we lost.
The whirlwind of damage happening now, is entirely at the feet of the vacuum left by BHO and the suicidal Left.
I am disheartened that propaganda (the war was a mistake) is now mainstream.
@Moetom – regarding the “Post Comment” button getting squeezed away, my guess is that you’ve installed a script blocker or similar browser extension. If so, you need to allow any domain with “wordpress” or “wp” or “presscdn” to run scripts. If not, I’m not sure why you’re seeing what you’re seeing.
Uncle Al How do you know what Bush and Co had decided? The New York Times?
I didn’t watch the debate but I’ve heard clip after clip from it. Trump sounded outta control. Anger is fine. Trump misfired and he sounded like the lefty cranks on my FB page.
It was a mistake, from the start. Not meaning to single out the Bush admin over those years because there have been other admin’s do much worse – it was a mistake that has killed thoudsands of American men and women over the past decade and for what? Needless deaths….
Follow up. If Trump believes Bush lied he has every right to say so. Playing softball in this race isnt his style. If he really doesnt believe he lied, it was mean spirited. I don’t know whats in others peoples heads, I can only go on what they say unless they flip flop on any issue or the facts prove otherwise.
Thanks for the tip Uncle Al. I’ll have my son check it out.
Yes.
No.
Yes. Though not a fatal mistake. Most people realize that Geo.W. is a squishy liberal and Trump is trolling for the moron vote and is trying to neutralize the Geo.W. campaigning threat.
YES. Because…
South Carolina is an OPEN PRIMARY state;
Dems and Indies can vote in the Repub Primary.
Trump is TROLLING FOR THEIR VOTES.
@Moetom – No, not the NYT, you silly! How about George Tenet, CIA director; the so-called “Downing St. Memo” describing a meeting of Blair and senior officials on July 23, 2002; and the Bush-Blair memo written by David Manning, Blair’s senior foreign policy adviser?
and over in the Anti Trumpet camp:
http://www.dailywire.com/news/3396/spoiled-rich-blowhard-brat-threatens-lawsuit-third-ben-shapiro#pq=v7XDGP
The real mistake in the region was made when Jimmy Carter threw the Shaw of Iran to the dogs. We’ve been paying dearly for
that fuckup ever since And we will continue to pay for generations to come, judging on what is going on today.
I’ve been a Trump/Cruz man from day one, but Trump should button his lip. He sometimes sounds like a childish asshole.
Well, heck, Moetom, if you want to get all historical about things, we should go back to 1953 Iran when the CIA and SIS put the skids under Mohammad Mosaddegh, thus allowing the Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi to come to dictatorial power, which laid the groundwork for the coming of the Ayatollahs.
Did Trump make a mistake?
I know of at least one Floridian that will never vote for him after that 9/11 Truther outburst.
Final nail in the coffin that I could never trust the loudmouth.
Will he build a wall?
Hahaha! Suckers!
NO WAY IN HELL!
Not gonna happen.
From what I have heard, I am not alone in not trusting that LIAR.
It was not a mistake because this whole clusterfuck is on purpose. The elite get off on death and destruction and the fools that join in are just that – – FOOLS. Besides, we were attacked by Saudi Arabia, not Iraq. Did Bush lie? He’s part of the frickin’ elite. Lying is what they do.
Yes Al but the Shaw was trying to modernize/Westernize the country, but not fast enough for the progs over here. I cannot argue with you though as it has been a rough ride for Arabs for the past fourteen centuries or so. No hope in sight. I hate to see Americans die for them.
I’m a Trump supporter, but I think he should have kept his trap shut on this one.
Trump is looking at the big picture. Denigrating W helps him in the general.
It’s politics.
So Trump is trolling for Democrat and Independent votes, just like Thad Cochran and Co. 😉
Must be a southern State thing, but getting your strategy from the RNC……
Everybody since the 90’s said Saddam had and was working on WMD. The Brits, the French, the Russians. Everybody had intel on this. Bill Clinton’s “Operation Desert Fox” campaign had him on National TV talking about Saddam’s WMD and stopping him. It’s in the transcript. Everybody said he had WMD until it was not politically convenient to support Bush.
The war was not a mistake. Saddam crossed the line drawn in the sand dozens of times. The mistake was the way the war was run after the army was crushed and the blowing off of suggestions that it was going to turn into urban guerrilla warfare.
That and “mission accomplished” and then turning around and poo-pooing Saddam as some guy hiding in a cave.
The war was not a mistake, the execution was.
War should crush your enemy so badly that they lose the will to fight.
The enemy is Islam.
Around 1000 years ago we hurt them so bad they kept their heads down for a long time. Until we do that again we will suffer ceaseless battle.
Yes, it was a big mistake. The people at the highest level thought they could make a democracy of a non-Nation-State. The price in lives has been huge, religious minorities persecuted or murdered.
Say what you will about Sadam, but he knew how to rule the place and defended the area against Iran. The mistake was not helping him. He could have been persuaded to acting civilized for appearances, while keeping the crazies in check.
As for the WMDs, whether it was a lie or not, he wasn’t ever going to use them against us if he had them.
it was a mistake & what everyone is ignoring is that the Bush Administration was not concerned w/ chemical WMD. they were making the argument that Saadam Hussein was trying to get nuclear WMD (remember the ‘yellow cake’?) … there has been no proof of nuclear bomb making, that I know of
I consider myself far more conservative than Trumplestiltskin. With that said, his petulant, boorish behavior in the SC debate has me wanting him out of the race. What a fucking asshole. Kiss my ass Trump! Now sue me bitch!
After the bump: Trump should have kept his mouth shut. George W. Bush is not running for President, and I doubt Jeb will be tarred by his brother’s actions.
Although I think, and thought the Iraq invasion was a mistake, what was done was done, and Obama’s foreign policy (or lack thereof) only made things worse. But I still don’t think Bush lied – Hussein did have chemical weapon stockpiles and he had demonstrated that he would use them. Was that enough to invade Iraq? Opinions may differ, but at least Bush did have a causes belli.
“At this point, what difference does it make?”
— HRC
😉
I have archived somewhere on a disk from back in the 90’s an article from the NEW YORK TIMES, where they went into detail about the WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION that were a major issue to the “Bill Clinton” administration! And what an immediate threat they were at the time.
Of course the fuckin’ “leftie” assholes forgot all about that shit!