Current Level of US Troops to Remain in Iraq Through 2010
McCain Supports General Schoomaker’s Plans for Iraq
For Immediate Release, McCain Senate Web Page
Thursday, Oct 12, 2006
Washington D.C. – U.S. Senator John McCain (R-AZ) today released the following statement in support of General Peter J. Schoomaker’s announcement on the Army’s long-term plans for Iraq: “Today, Army Chief of Staff, General Peter J. Schoomaker announced that the Army has plans to keep the current level of soldiers in Iraq through 2010."
We at WinTheGWOT.org know from experience that throwing more troops at the problem is not the answer. The troops in theater today are unable to provide the most basic of Iraqi needs—security and stability. Keeping troops there for a longer period without strategically changing how we employ them will not defeat the insurgents. We are fighting radical extremists, who by definition are willing to go to greater levels of violence than we are to win this war. Recall that Saddam Hussein only managed to control the latent insurgency in Iraq through brutal oppression and terror. Since the US cannot do the same, we must switch to a classic, and proven, counterinsurgency strategy.
McCain Press Release Continued: "Currently there are 141,000 troops in Iraq, including 120,000 soldiers. Earlier this year we heard reports that the Army would begin reducing the number of troops in Iraq to 100,000 by the end of the year. I support General Schoomaker's comments and believe we must increase troop strength if we are to win this war,” McCain said. “The announcement also reveals how imperative it is to begin immediately to increase the end strength of the Army and Marine Corps. We are overstretched at a time of widespread and very serious challenges. Congress has authorized increases in recent years that the Defense Department has not acted upon with the urgency Congress intended, and events so clearly warrant.“
We at WinTheGWOT.org believe that implementing a genuine counterinsurgency strategy in Iraq, US troop strength would not need to be increased and might even be reduced. This would ease the strain on the military as a whole and prepare our troops for the types of conflict that they are likely to continue facing in the 21st Century (or at least as long as the US military remains a conventional super power). Any increase in spending and training for the Defense Department must focus on bringing our unconventional warfare and counterinsurgency capabilities to the same level as our conventional war-fighting capability.
More from the McCain Press Release: “Senior officers from National Guard units and Reserve Centers across the Nation report the signs of strain on National Guardsmen and Reservists as they prepare for additional deployments to Iraq. Soldiers and Marines are reporting for their third tours in Iraq. We must begin now to increase substantially the troop strength of the Army and Marine Corps by at least 100,000.”
Again, we at WinTheGWOT.org disagree. Increasing the size and strength of the most powerful military in the world, which already has access to the latest and greatest technology available has not shown any significant success or progress in this war. The very definition of insanity is doing the exact same thing repeatedly and expecting a different outcome. Instead, the number of unconventional troops and the amounts and level of their counterinsurgency training should be what is increased. If every single Special Forces soldier in the US Army were in Iraq right now, out of a total 140,000 troops in theater, they would make up less than 4% of the total. The only logical use for further military spending with respect to Iraq, Afghanistan, and the Global War on Terror is to significantly increase the numbers and capabilities of our unconventional warriors who are better able to beat the insurgents at their own game.
For Immediate Release, McCain Senate Web Page
Thursday, Oct 12, 2006
Washington D.C. – U.S. Senator John McCain (R-AZ) today released the following statement in support of General Peter J. Schoomaker’s announcement on the Army’s long-term plans for Iraq: “Today, Army Chief of Staff, General Peter J. Schoomaker announced that the Army has plans to keep the current level of soldiers in Iraq through 2010."We at WinTheGWOT.org know from experience that throwing more troops at the problem is not the answer. The troops in theater today are unable to provide the most basic of Iraqi needs—security and stability. Keeping troops there for a longer period without strategically changing how we employ them will not defeat the insurgents. We are fighting radical extremists, who by definition are willing to go to greater levels of violence than we are to win this war. Recall that Saddam Hussein only managed to control the latent insurgency in Iraq through brutal oppression and terror. Since the US cannot do the same, we must switch to a classic, and proven, counterinsurgency strategy.
McCain Press Release Continued: "Currently there are 141,000 troops in Iraq, including 120,000 soldiers. Earlier this year we heard reports that the Army would begin reducing the number of troops in Iraq to 100,000 by the end of the year. I support General Schoomaker's comments and believe we must increase troop strength if we are to win this war,” McCain said. “The announcement also reveals how imperative it is to begin immediately to increase the end strength of the Army and Marine Corps. We are overstretched at a time of widespread and very serious challenges. Congress has authorized increases in recent years that the Defense Department has not acted upon with the urgency Congress intended, and events so clearly warrant.“
We at WinTheGWOT.org believe that implementing a genuine counterinsurgency strategy in Iraq, US troop strength would not need to be increased and might even be reduced. This would ease the strain on the military as a whole and prepare our troops for the types of conflict that they are likely to continue facing in the 21st Century (or at least as long as the US military remains a conventional super power). Any increase in spending and training for the Defense Department must focus on bringing our unconventional warfare and counterinsurgency capabilities to the same level as our conventional war-fighting capability.
More from the McCain Press Release: “Senior officers from National Guard units and Reserve Centers across the Nation report the signs of strain on National Guardsmen and Reservists as they prepare for additional deployments to Iraq. Soldiers and Marines are reporting for their third tours in Iraq. We must begin now to increase substantially the troop strength of the Army and Marine Corps by at least 100,000.”
Again, we at WinTheGWOT.org disagree. Increasing the size and strength of the most powerful military in the world, which already has access to the latest and greatest technology available has not shown any significant success or progress in this war. The very definition of insanity is doing the exact same thing repeatedly and expecting a different outcome. Instead, the number of unconventional troops and the amounts and level of their counterinsurgency training should be what is increased. If every single Special Forces soldier in the US Army were in Iraq right now, out of a total 140,000 troops in theater, they would make up less than 4% of the total. The only logical use for further military spending with respect to Iraq, Afghanistan, and the Global War on Terror is to significantly increase the numbers and capabilities of our unconventional warriors who are better able to beat the insurgents at their own game.
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