Are you kidding me?
President Barack Obama came under pressure from U.S. lawmakers on Wednesday to persuade Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki to step down over what they see as failed leadership in the face of an insurgency threatening his country.
What? It's bad enough we walked away from Iraq in 2011. Are we going to destroy what is left of the Iraqi state's ability to fight and hold by pushing Maliki out?
Replacing Maliki is a replacement for actual action to kill jihadis and preserve Iraq's territorial integrity.
The only thing we should be pushing for in Iraq is for the Iraqis to follow their laws on who the prime minister is and how long he serves. And then work in good faith with whoever holds the office.
Anything else puts us in the position of owning Iraq and stamping whoever is in charge as "made in America."
And taking full responsibility for what happens there.
I'll repeat what I've written before. Have we forgotten Diem of South Vietnam? Have we? I know I've mentioned it.
I thought I had.
Is somebody in Iraq going to wrongly think we are green-lighting a coup if the Iraqis don't peacefully replace Maliki?
Let's help Iraq. But deciding who runs Iraq is the way to wreck Iraq.
Seriously, are we this stupid?
UPDATE: Really, the Iraqis have as much justification to call on President Obama to step down because of failed leadership, don't they?
