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National Security Policy:
New Directions in Iraq

BY: Guest Contributor David Cohen
FROM: Experience Advocacy
July 1st, 2008

The House and Senate support a thorough reversal of the Bush-Cheney Iraq war policy. It is one of the great under reported stories in the main stream media, the alternative progressive media and the blogosphere. In supporting an end to Bush’s destructive policy to peoples lives– Iraqis, Americans, Allies – the House and Senate support a new President’s orderly withdrawal of US troops from Iraq. Congress has given the new President lots of maneuvering room to redirect our Iraq and national security policy.

The House and Senate have made two other matters abundantly clear: the Iraq War has neglected our efforts in dealing effectively and resolutely with Al Qaeda; it has also given the Taliban an added and unnecessary advantage in Afghanistan.

As long as Bush is President there are no serious limitations on his authority because of his veto power. Nearly all House and Senate Republicans support the President’s veto when exercised. Only a new President, with a different Iraq and national security policy, can lead the US government to give up the folly of its ways.

A majority of the House repeatedly, and the Senate once, voted for a date certain orderly redeployment of troops from Iraq. In addition, the House in its approval of the Defense Authorization legislation in 2008 established its support for a major overhaul of our Iraq and national security policy. That legislation has not been considered on the Senate floor.

Here’s what the House did in broad outline:
1. Said no to privatizing the war. It barred contracting out inherent governmental functions in combat areas. Embedded in the policies that have been approved are serious accountability requirements for military contractors and their employees.

2. Status of forces agreements (SOFA) negotiated between the US and Iraq’s government, dealing with the defense of Iraq internally or externally, have no legal effect unless the agreement is a treaty that the Senate has given its advice and consent to and/or is specifically authorized by an Act of Congress.

3. Barred contractors and their employees from interrogating prisoners. Torture is no longer privatized thereby, if enacted, would end our Pontius Pilate policy of approving torture.

4. Insist on setting high standards for the government by ruling out torture. In doing so, the House followed the example set by Senator Obama in his pioneering work in the Illinois state legislature: he led the fight to require the video taping police interrogations in felony cases. The House approved legislation requiring videotaping and electronic recording during detainee interrogations that the Defense Department (DOD) controls.

5. DOD is barred from using funds authorized by the legislation for propoganda. The enforcement mechanism calls for oversight by the hard-hitting DOD Inspector General (IG) and the General Accounting Office (GAO). (In my experience the IG offices and GAO have provided stellar examples of public service even when the rest of the government, particularly DOD and the Justice Department, have abused power and lied.)

6. The House adopted a whole host of health amendments that protect the women and men serving in our armed forces. Protections and benefits run after discharge. These protections include addressing the disturbing number of Iraq war related suicides.

7. The Senate Armed Services Committee legislation focused on broad strategic matters in addition to dealing with the legislation’s details. The Senate Committee’s focus shows a fundamental disapproval of the direction Bush-Cheney has taken our government. It called for changes in three broad areas: (a) provide our armed services with resources, training and technology so that combat and stabilizing operations can succeed in Iraq and Afghanistan; (b) recognize that the readiness of the military to perform necessary missions to prevent and protect has been seriously neglected; (c) transform leadership in DOD to deal with threats to our security in the 21st century. These include countering threats from non-state actors and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.

The House and Senate have laid the basis for a policy from a new President that will lead to cooperation between the President, DOD and most of the Congress. The House and Senate provide a valuable lesson. Congress, in a new Administration can initiate constructive policy steps that are based on feedback it knows how to receive– a feedback that often doesn’t get through complex bureaucracies. such as DOD.

The policy will work only if the new President is committed to a new direction in Iraq. That policy has to be based on an orderly withdrawal of our troops from Iraq. That withdrawal enables us to meet our responsibilities to the Iraq people and its refugees in that country’s rebuilding efforts.