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THOMPSON AND OBAMA FACE OFF OVER IRAQ
ASSESSMENTS AT VFW CONVENTION -- Two men
with White House aspirations offered starkly
different
assessments of the war in Iraq before the
national
convention of the Veterans of Foreign Wars.
For more on the VFW, use the VA Watchdog search
engine...click here...
http://www.yourvabenefits.org/ses
search.php?q=vfw&op=and
Story here...
http://www.chicagotribune
.com/news/nationworld/chi-vfw_
webaug22,1,4509651.story
Story below:
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Thompson and Obama face off over Iraq
assessments at VFW convention
By John McCormick
Tribune staff reporter
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Two men with White House aspirations offered starkly
different assessments of the war in Iraq today before a national
convention of military veterans.
"Some people in this country apparently think that if we can pull out of
Iraq, our problems are going to be over," said former Tennessee Sen.
Fred Thompson, who is expected to announce his Republican presidential
bid early next month.
"You and I know better than that," he continued. "We know that Iraq is
an important front in this war. But we also know that if we appear to be
divided and weak in this nation, that it is going to ennoble an enemy."
Thompson's appearance addressing several thousand members of the
Veterans of Foreign Wars came before one by Democratic presidential
candidate Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois, who renewed his call for the
removal of American military forces from Iraq.
"No matter how brilliantly and bravely our troops and their commanders
perform … they cannot and should not bear the responsibility of
resolving grievances at the heart of Iraq's civil war," Obama said to
tepid applause. "No military surge, no matter how brilliantly performed,
can succeed without political reconciliation and a surge of diplomacy in
Iraq and the region."
Later, the Illinois Democrat told reporters the military surge backed by
the White House cannot work without successful negotiations on the part
of Iraq's feuding factions.
"What I have been clear about, even before the surge started, was that
if we put [an] additional 20,000 or 30,000 American troops in Baghdad,
then it's going to have an impact, because they are doing an outstanding
job in carrying out their military operations," he said. "The question
has always been: what then? Do we actually have a mechanism to trigger
the kind of negotiations … that can stabilize the country over the
long-term? And on that front, we have seen complete failure."
Arguing that America's forces are stretched thin, Obama called for an
additional 65,000 soldiers and 27,000 Marines to the size of the U.S.
armed forces to "relieve the strain on our ground forces."
A member of the Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs, Obama received
stronger applause as he called for improved services for America's
veterans. "We also need to provide more services to our military
families because they go into battle whenever their loved ones go into
battle," he said.
Thompson, meanwhile, said the nation needs a more frank conversation on
the amount of resources and unity it will take to defeat global
terrorism.
"I'm concerned about my country," Thompson said. "If we don't take the
right path, we are going wind up with a weaker, less prosperous and more
divided country than when we came into it."
Both men were welcomed respectfully and received standing ovations from
an audience that included veterans from every U.S. war since World War
II.
Thompson, who plays a character on television's "Law & Order," joked
that he left the Senate because he "longed for the realism and sincerity
of Hollywood."
After his speech, Thompson said he feels no rush to formally enter the
presidential race. "We've got plenty of time to get our message out," he
said.
Earlier today, Obama announced a well-timed endorsement from Rep.
Patrick Murphy of Pennsylvania, the only member of Congress who served
in combat in the current war in Iraq.
Solidifying his armed-forces credentials is important for Obama, who has
had a couple missteps with military jargon in recent months.
In May, his campaign sent out a news release that spelled "flak" as
"flack," when referring to a flak jacket. Although some dictionaries say
both spellings are acceptable, the campaign of GOP Sen. John McCain of
Arizona pounced on the typo to suggest Obama lacks military experience.
And last week at the Iowa State Fair, Obama asked two soldiers what
"squad" they belonged to, rather than asking for their "unit." The
question might be seen by some as the military equivalent of asking
someone for their home's street number, but not the street or city where
they live.
On Monday, the VFW convention heard from two other presidential
candidates: McCain and Democratic Sen. Hillary Clinton of New York.
The VFW invited the two top candidates from each party, based on
polling. When Republicans Rudy Giuliani and Mitt Romney were not able to
attend, the group turned to McCain and Thompson.
McCain and Clinton also presented vastly different approaches on Iraq.
"The best way of honoring their service is by beginning to bring them
home," said Clinton, who also received respectful applause.
Clinton said parts of the surge strategy are "working," a notion McCain
and the VFW support.
"Our defeat in Iraq would be a catastrophe not for Iraq, but for the
United States," McCain said. "And I cannot be complicit in it."
That four candidates took the time to visit the VFW convention is no
surprise, since veterans and their families are a large and important
constituency.
The VFW said polling from the 2004 presidential election showed veterans
break slightly more Republican than Democrat, 47 percent to 42 percent.
It also said roughly 90 percent of veterans vote in presidential
elections, a proportion significantly higher than average.
Still, the VFW's political leanings do tend to be more conservative. In
a 2006 congressional race in west-suburban Chicago, for example, its
political committee endorsed Republican Peter Roskam over Democrat Tammy
Duckworth, a VFW member who lost both legs in the Iraq War.
The VFW's political arm is not expected to endorse a presidential
candidate. President Bush, meanwhile, is scheduled to address the
convention Wednesday.
mccormickj@tribune.com
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Larry Scott --
