America's view of Republicans crumbles in Iraq
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opinion/oped/bal-op.schaller14feb14,0,771774.story?coll=bal-oped-headlines
According to the latest Gallup survey,
Republican self-identification has declined nationally and in
almost every American state. Why? The short answer is that
President Bush's war of choice in Iraq has destroyed the
partisan brand Republicans spent the past four decades building.
In uniform or out, Americans think Iraq is a disaster,
oppose escalation and blame Mr. Bush and his party for
the mess in Mesopotamia.
Heading into the 2006 mid-terms, polls showed Republicans
trailing Democrats as the party most trusted to handle Iraq
and terrorism. Nationally, Mr. Bush's war approval ratings
hover around 30 percent.
Military members are skeptical, too.
A Military Times poll released in December revealed that only
35 percent of military members approved of the president's
handling of the war - despite the fact that 46 percent of them
are self-identified Republicans (down from 60 percent in previous
Military Times polls) while just 16 percent are Democrats.
According to a recent Zogby survey of troops serving in Iraq,
72 percent want American forces home within a year.
Congressional hearings last week on war contracting dispel
the second claim. Billions of dollars appropriated for Iraq
cannot be accounted for, and contracts have been doled out
with limited oversight and little regard for competitiveness.
Robert Greenwald's powerful documentary Iraq for Sale
exposes many of the absurdities. You wouldn't sign a
three-year, $250,000 lease for a vehicle you could buy
outright for $50,000, but our government does.
The "cost-plus" procurement protocol pays contractors
a fixed percentage on top of whatever they spend,
encouraging them to spend as much and as inefficiently
as possible. So rather than vehicles with minor mechanical
damage being repaired, many are junked in favor of
expensive replacements.
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