Strange coincidence with this story considering the big story and then bigger denial by the Bushies about the "secret plan" to drag in more National Guard troops to Iraq. Even though the story fails to mention once the "secret plan" this looks like the plan that Kerry and others have been discussing that Bush is not being honest about.
Even after the defeat of the Iraqi troops in Falluja (you remember, where the US trained, paid and armed the Iraqis who then flipped sides and fought and killed US troops with US arms) they're talking again about using them in action. Despite bombing and killing civilians I don't think that the US military is stupid enough to try and use the Iraqi troops in a key offensive. Who do you think they're going to use? (Answer: National Guard and US Reserves.)
Falluja is big but we're now looking at a country-wide problem that will not be fixed by a minor effort. Despite previous complaints about politicians interfering with military matters in Vietnam (you know the story, we lost because of politicians who had no right involving themselves in military matters) political decisions by the White House have clearly had a negative impact on the military situation in Iraq as told by the US military.
Since we live in a democracy, I don't have a problem with the politicians making decisions. I do have a problem with hypocrits like Bush pointing the finger at others for a war we lost in Vietnam while he sat in an officers club in Texas and Alabama. Even now he always tells us that if he is allowing the military to call the shots in Iraq but that is not the case. He's a liar.
Faced with a growing insurgency and a January deadline for national elections, American commanders in Iraq say they are preparing operations to open up rebel-held areas, especially Falluja, the restive city west of Baghdad now under control of insurgents and Islamist groups.
A senior American commander said the military intended to take back Falluja and other rebel areas by year's end. [Interesting coincidence with the timing re: secret plan]
An initial assault by American marines on Falluja was halted in April as Iraqi anger grew at the death of as many as 600 Iraqis in the fighting.
At the time, Marine commanders said that they were perhaps two days away from gaining control of the interior of the city, and that they were ordered to halt by the political leadership in Washington.
