Friday - May 11, 2007

America Alone?

Meet the new face of our ally in the War on Terror in Iraq. This is Gordon Brown, the new resident of Number 10 Downing Street. Tony Blair hasn’t even managed to clear his bags out of his office yet and the new Prime Minister is already making noise about “reversing Blair’s policies in Iraq” and leaving the US to manage things on our own.

Prime Minister Brown seems to be more concerned about saving Britain’s health care system and “economic development” than he is about Islamic radicals and the growing problems in the Middle East. I’m sure he has Britain’s best interests at heart and I wish him well. Thus it must be.

Perhaps his next announcement will include a note from Osama Bin Laden and an announcement of “peace in our time”? We shall see.

Those who forget the past are doomed to repeat it. And so, the next chapter is brought to a close and a new chapter begins in the long history between the United States Of America and the United Kingdom. May God have mercy on us all ...

Brown Reviews Strategy On Iraq
_{(LONDON TIMES) - May 12, 2007}

Gordon Brown plans to fly to Iraq to review British policy and troop numbers after using the launch of his leadership campaign yesterday to try to make a decisive break with the Blair era.

The Chancellor said he would govern Britain in a different way – “I want to lead a government humble enough to know its place” – as he lambasted the excessive use of spin and the cult of celebrity, and pledged to restore trust in Labour and politics.

But he also accepted for the first time that mistakes had been made in Iraq, saying that much more must be done to promote economic development and political reconciliation.

His decision to make an early visit to see army chiefs on the ground and the Iraqi Government will raise speculation that Mr Brown would like to speed up the timetable for British withdrawal. British forces are due to hand over control of Basra to Iraqi forces by the end of the year, when troop levels will be reduced from about 7,000 to 2,000.

British forces are due to pull out of Saddam’s former palace in the centre of the city this summer, and eventually all British forces and the consulate will be relocated to the airport.

One of the Chancellor’s allies said last night: “His current assessment is that the the timetable is right. But such matters must be kept under review and that will be among the purposes of his visit, although his big concern is to make the people of Iraq feel they have a stake in their country through economic development.”

A change of policy on Iraq would be considered a dramatic shift from Mr Blair’s stance, but diplomatic sources said that the strong US criticism of President Bush for sending 25,000 more troops to Baghdad gives Mr Brown an opportunity to accelerate the withdrawal process.

Mr Brown could go to Iraq within weeks if the Left fails to raise enough votes from MPs to challenge him for the Labour party leadership. But, if there is a Continued on page 2, col 4 contest he would not be able to use taxpayers’ money for a government trip that might be seen to boost his standing.

Mr Brown used his launch speech in London to distance himself from elements of Mr Blair’s legacy: “As a politician I have never sought the public eye for its own sake. I have never believed presentation should be a substitute for policy. I do not believe politics is about celebrity.”

- More ...

Posted by The Skipper     on 05/11/2007 at 11:21 PM   
Filed Under: • Iraq •  
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