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transformation/what rumsfeld wanted

Reader comment on item: Does Rumsfeld Favor Getting U.S. Troops out of Iraqi Inhabited Areas?

Submitted by Allison Coates (United States), Dec 18, 2006 at 16:46

I think this has always been Rumsfeld's plan. His notions of transformation of the armed forces to lighter, quicker units built around Special Forces or BCTs were always pointing toward a counterinsurgency--that we would be the insurgency countering theirs; lightning quick in attacking and then disappearing, making our enemy vulnerable from anywhere and at any time. Rumsfeld continues to say that a bigger footprint in Iraq is a problem. He doesn't believe that politically, anyone would have allowed or will allow US occupation of Baghdad as a long term strategy--because unless it's really an occupation, it just means more US targets for IEDs.

The military hates this idea. The Army still wants to fight a war with overwhelming support staff. Just getting them to think inventively enough to attack Hussein required Rumsfeld to reject dozens of plans over and over again. getting them to act as guerillas is not something they understand.

So: why, if Rumsfeld believed this didn't it happen? Because the army didn't agree, for one. they wanted to fight the way their doctrine tells them to fight. but for another, neither did Bush. He wanted to let his generals do what they wanted. But also, it became difficult politically as the iraqis wanted more and more help domestically in the non baghdad/sunni triangle provinces. they wanted the army cirp of engineers, they wanted fire fighters and school builders, etc. no one outside of the DoD stepped up for those jobs as they should have, and so the military did them more and more.

Submitting....

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Reader comments (13) on this item

Title Commenter Date Thread
America's stomach [137 words]
w/response from Daniel Pipes
jennifer SolisAug 25, 2007 14:00106967
debate with ken livingston [11 words]
w/response from Daniel Pipes
ira levineJan 20, 2007 12:1873775
Reporting of American Casualties and the negative impact on Americans [319 words]Lou MarstenJan 1, 2007 14:1571332
transformation/what rumsfeld wanted [256 words]Allison CoatesDec 18, 2006 16:4669906
Does Rumi favor ... [45 words]Steven LDec 18, 2006 14:5069882
Rumsfeld Favor Getting U.S. Troops out of Iraqi [570 words]Kim SegarDec 18, 2006 14:3269880
A plan that is different [128 words]MadconductorDec 12, 2006 12:2169265
To Protect and Defend the Constitution of Iraq [1663 words]William J GreenDec 7, 2006 19:3568697
No Go Zones [83 words]DavodDec 5, 2006 13:3068363
Like Londonderry? [49 words]Nick Good - South AfricaDec 4, 2006 07:4068213
Nick Good !!! Are you out there ? [28 words]DawnMar 12, 2007 00:1268213
UK does it [74 words]VijayDec 3, 2006 15:3868148
Don is still using Veitnam era tactics [203 words]American MuslimDec 3, 2006 13:0468131

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