What Iraqi Air Force?

Another gem from this site. From 6/20/2006:

Against the War on Terror:

"The problem with calls to “bring home the troops” is not that it is premature or defeatist, but that it is disingenuous. For example, the debate today in the Senate over the Defense Appropriations Bill for 2007 is focused around “redeployment” in Iraq rather than “withdrawal”. (As the New York Times notes, the latter word is not even used in the Democrat's proposal.) Senator Russ Feingold (D-WI), explains “redeployment”: the US would retain a force in Iraq capable of “direct participation in counter-terrorism activities, training Iraqi security forces, and protecting United States infrastructure and personnel.” Beyond police check-point duty, what else is there? The crucial point is that the cited activities can all be accomplished from one of the US’s massive, permanent air bases. The Democratic Party is calling not for withdrawal from Iraq, but for withdrawal to the permanent footprint. This is but the latest in the long line of America's empty gestures toward Iraqi sovereignty."