Peter Beinart on the need for honesty on Iraq

The following is an excerpt from an op-ed by Peter Beinart of The New Republic: "President Bush and Democratic Rep. Lynn Woolsey of California deserve each other.” In his Sunday Washington Post op-ed, Beinart explains: “Woolsey is a founder of the newly created Out of Iraq Congressional Caucus. She recently told Roll Call that 'Success for us is two words: Troops. Home.'"

"That's breathtakingly irresponsible. Of course success means eventually bringing American troops home. But it also means ensuring that Iraq doesn't dissolve into civil war. Preventing Iraq from becoming a failed state that exports a new generation of jihadist killers is vital to American security. And making sure we don't abandon the Iraqi people to Lebanon-style slaughter is vital to American honor. Woolsey doesn't seem to understand that....But the Out of Iraq Caucus didn't come from nowhere. It's the result of President Bush's ongoing refusal to speak honestly about the war."

See Shake Up The War Room by Peter Beinart Washington Post June 26, 2005. (AJ) (hat tip, EPIC)