Why is the United States in Iraq?

Question

Why is the United States in Iraq?

Answer 1

You have to look at a map to get the stradegy. By going into Iraq and having troops in Afganistan, automatically you have Iran surrounded. Then to the west Syria is a problem for Israel and has always been a state sponsor of terrorism. By being in Iraq it gives us a base of operations to go into Iran or Syria.



Plus before the war the media said we need to get out of Saudi and needing a significant presence in the reason Iraq was the logical choice.



Sadaam was funding suicide bombers in the west bank, EVEYONE from the French and John Kerry thought he was a threat. (he used WMD's against Iran and the Kurds)



And there were terrorist training camps in Iraq. Those who say different have got to explain how they could be in Florida and not Iraq. They never have.



Do I think there have been some mistakes in the war? yeah we should have gone harder. But we can win it.

Answer 2

The Republican party saw an opening after 9/11 to persuade the american populace that invasion of an oil rich country was necessary for thier personal safety. If the US had a powerful military presence so close to one of the most valuable resources in the world then it could greater influence the world's political/economic destiny.



At first they told us it was to discover WMD. When it became impossible to prove that Saddam had WMD or ever planned on making it, the reason for our occupation changed. Saddam was painted as a violent man who must be overthrown. After he was captured the country had gone to hell so quickly that it would be impossible for us to withdraw without exaccerbating the situation.



Most of the officials in power believe that our continued prescense is the primary reason for the insurgency AND if we were to leave then the insurgency would destroy the country's tenuous new government and control the assests within the region.



What the president now proposes is to slowly train the Iraqis to protect the country themselves. This means training a military to replace the one we destroyed and disbanded when we first invaded. As you can imagine training and supplying a military from scratch is no easy task. Estimates on when the Iraqis will need no protect from the US range from 5-10 years.



The our military prescense will slowly be phased out but it seems clear that we will not be completely out ever. Remember this when the 2006 and 2008 elections come up. Choose which political/military philosophy you would prefer held the destiny of our nation and other nations around the world.

Answer 3

1) To allow US oil companies access to Iraqi Oil. They would not steal the oil as some suggest, but negotiate terms with an Iraqi government to extract and sell the oil in exchange for payments to the Iraqi government. In exchange these companies would provide campaign support, Jobs and other benefits to Republicans in congress and the administration, and their family members, thus strengthening the political position of the party. This mission has been successful.



2) To provide lucrative business opportunities to US Contractors such as Kellog Brown And Root, Halliburton, Bechtel, and others for the rebuilding of Iraq, servicing of the troops, and some militatry functions as well. In exchange these companies would provide campaign contributions, Jobs (such as the one Vice President Cheney recieved from Halliburton, with no prior experience managing a large company) and other favors to Administration officials and members of congress, thus helping to strengthen the position of the party. This mission has been successful and in 2008 you will see large numbers of Bush administration employees and their families accepting lucrative jobs from these companies and their affiliates.



3) To protect US interests in the area such as Israel and Saudi Arabia. By moving bases from Saudi Arabia to Iraq and building up bases there, the US could (it was thought) exert more military pressure on regiemes such as Syria and Iran, who might threaten Israel or oil production in the region. This mission has failed, as Iran's influence in the region has spread into Shia-controlled territories, putting Israel and oil production in greater peril.



4) To benefit the legacy of presidents HW and GW Bush. The idea was that we would "finish the job" started by Predient HW Bush and transform Iraq into a western style democracy, thus portraying the presidents as visionary and having transformed the world for the better. This mission does not appear to be going very well, but time will tell.