...is out with a new book entitled, War of Necessity, War of Choice, which is favorably reviewed in the Daily Beast by Nathaniel Fick. Haass has a unique perspective; he served under both Bush presidents and was involved in the planning for both U. S. wars against Iraq. And (Surprise!), Haass says that the first Gulf War (which went well) was a war of necessity, while the second Gulf War (which hasn't gone so well) was a war of choice. Huh! Not only that, but he was in favor of the first but had serious reservations about the second. Go figure! Apparently, he even wrote a "last-ditch memo for the president outlining alternatives to war," which Colin Powell stuffed in his pocket. The review doesn't say where the memo wound up, but we all know what happened next.
To be fair to Haass, he resigned his post in 2003 and went on to become president of the Council on Foreign Relations. But what I'd like to know is, why didn't people like him and Powell speak out at the time? Why didn't Powell resign if he had serious reservations? When Cy Vance disagreed with President Carter's rescue mission in Iran, he resigned in a very public manner. And why did it take until now for Haass to conclude that the war that went well was a good idea while the war that didn't was a mistake? Why not say so at the time? Why make the rest of us guess? He could have saved thousands of lives. Wouldn't that be better than writing a book to show how smart he is?
2 comments:
I think Haas and Powell as well as others from the Bush 1 administration didn't realize the degree to which Cheney and Rumsfeld had moved the goal posts of rational national security policy by 2003. Upon their entrance in 2002 the Bush 2 national security team was hailed as "seasoned" and "professional", by the media and congress. They were the A team, and were hardnosed pragmatists who would strictly define policy against real interests.
9/11 changed everything. Cheney saw threats everywhere and became obsessed with raw/real time intelligence. Rumsfeld saw an opportunity to redefine national security policy leadership away from the NSC and State to the Pentagon. Condi Rice was an ineffectual NSC adviser, and Bush was too intellectually lazy to do anything but react.
The Bush 1 guys lost access and credibility as Cheney and Rumsfeld moved away from Bush 1 sensibility to Bush 2 toughness. The moderates never had a chance once things escalated.
Thank you for your comment.
Post a Comment