Blair Bringing British Troops Home

Tony Blair is rejecting George Bush's escalation strategy and bringing British troops home. Blair is bringing 1,600 British troops home now - that's around a quarter of the British troops still in Iraq - with 3,000 more to come home by the end of 2007 and the rest to follow in 2008.

Senator Kennedy gets it right:

"No matter how the White House tries to spin it, the British government has decided to split with President Bush and begin to move their troops out of Iraq. This should be a wake up call to the administration.
. . .
Eighteen other countries have already withdrawn or dramatically reduced their troop presence in Iraq. A majority of the American people voted last November for a changed policy in Iraq. A majority of the House and the Senate, a unanimous Baker- Hamilton Commission and numerous generals have rejected the Administration's policy in Iraq. And now our country's strongest ally has rejected it."

But the Bush administration still refuses to face facts.

From Condoleezza Rice:

"The coalition remains intact and, in fact, the British still have thousands of troops deployed in Iraq."

Those British troops are leaving, and they're leaving for a good reason.

And from Dick Cheney:

"I look at it and see it is actually an affirmation that there are parts of Iraq where things are going pretty well."

Give me a break. Or, better yet, bring U.S. troops home now and call it an affirmation that things are going pretty well. But let's not kid ourselves: Iraq is in a civil war, George Bush won't face reality, and our troops are paying the price. Congress needs to force Bush to change course and bring the troops home.

Technorati tags: Working Families Party | Iraq