How To Win Iraq

Professor Blanchard discussed a few days back a column by David Brooks of the NY Times in which Brooks argues in favor Andrew Krepinevich's Iraq strategy.  Brooks suggests that Krepinevich makes a devastating critique of the Bush team's Iraq game plan. 

Now many are arguing both that Brooks got Krepinevich wrong and that Krepinevich and Rumsfeld are not that far apart.  NROs "The Corner" has brief discussion here, here, and here.  Also, Thomas Barnett chimes in here. The impression one gets from this discussion is that American foreign policy in general and Iraqi policy in the specific is very hard.  This is why giving responsibility to the Democratic Party is ill advised.  If the South Dakota left-wing blogosphere and the Cindy Sheehan anti-Israel parade are any indication, the Democratic Party cannot be trusted to make sound judgments regarding American security.  They just aren't serious about what it takes to defend America.  They would much rather bash George W. Bush over the head than engage in any real thinking.  Thirty years ago Daniel Patrick Moynihan said that the Republicans were the party of ideas while the Democrats were the party of special interests.  I think this still holds roughly true (although less true now than then).  Individual Democrats may have sound ideas, but as an institution the party is intellectually bankrupt.