We’re Not Conquerors: Time to Go

Since his start eighteen months ago, Barack Obama has time and time again said that we need a time table withdrawal from Iraq. It has been said, though, by President Bush and John McCain that a timed withdrawal could be catastrophic and very dangerous for American soldiers. However, what happens when we are told not by an American, but by an Iraqi, that it is time for us to consider a withdrawal from their nation?

It becomes a boost for Obama.

Last week, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki suggested that it was time for Americans to develop a time table for withdrawal. This is great news for those that think that the War in Iraq is a bad idea. But…It’s not great news for everyone. Here’s why.

For Barack Obama, he has been saying for a long time that he wants to get out of Iraq. He suggested throughout the entire primary that within sixteen months, we would be out of Iraq. That’s good. That’s very good. Americans are fed up with this war. I’m fed up with this war. It was a war that was unnecessary and now that we have the opportunity to pull out, we have to.

But for John McCain, this is bad news. He has time and time again used the War in Iraq as one of his biggest issues. “We will win!” he proclaims. Well that’s great, but if they want us out, we have to get out. But when you base your campaign on victory in Iraq, it can hurt you when the Prime Minister of Iraq says “time to go.”

So, what does this mean?

It means that now is the time to focus on what we need to focus on. America cannot become an imperialistic country. We are not Rome. As much as people suggest that we are like Rome, we are not. We cannot afford to invade countries. We are so many trillions of dollars in debt because of this war and we need to stop spending it.

I pose a question to President Bush and Senator McCain: are you conquerors or are you liberators? Do you want to be at war to expand American territory or to ‘do great things for the Iraqi people?’ If your answer to those two questions are the latter, then you must understand it is time to withdrawal.

Fortunately, one of the candidates is not a war monger and understands the need to withdrawal. Barack Obama seems to be focusing his attention now on the need to withdrawal. A time table is necessary.

With the Iraqis saying it’s time to go, I say it’s time to go. And this is only going to help Barack Obama. If he can focus in on how the Iraqis are saying that it is time to go and if he can really expand that, it will definitely make him look like the less war hungry of the two candidates. And at a time when the economy is in the toilet, that’s definitely something that will make people happy.

So, President Bush and John McCain…Are you conquerors?