The Iraq Study Group was established in March 2006 at the United States Institute of Peace. It released its report on December 6, 2006. The ISG was never intended to be an ongoing project, and its findings have not therefore been updated to account for changes in the circumstances in Iraq. Recent comments by members of Congress, members of the Bush administration, and the president himself, however, suggest a continued interest in “implementing” the recommendations of the ISG in some way. The ISG report itself declared that its 79 recommendations were part of a complete package rather than a menu. From the beginning, however, discussion of the report proceeded on the assumption that some might be implemented and others ignored. Any discussion of “implementing” the ISG today must proceed on such an assumption, since the changing situation on the ground in Iraq has made some of the original ISG proposals inappropriate or impossible; others have already been implemented or are in the process of implementation. What follows is a look at the ISG’s proposals in light of current circumstances to help inform the consideration of these recommendations. My annotations, in bold italic, follow each ISG recommendation.
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