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Daily Blog Buzz: Edwards Turning Left on Iraq?

By Samantha Sault

With the Iowa caucuses hours away and Barack Obama in the lead in many polls, is John Edwards making a last-ditch effort to woo the left-wing, anti-war base? Or does he really not think the surge is working? Bloggers are discussing this New York Times report:

John Edwards says that if elected president he would withdraw the American troops who are training the Iraqi army and police as part of a broader plan to remove virtually all American forces within 10 months… In one of his most detailed discussions to date about how he would handle Iraq as president, Mr. Edwards staked out a position that would lead to a more rapid and complete troop withdrawal than his principal rivals, Senators Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama, who have indicated they are open to keeping American trainers and counterterrorism units in Iraq… Mr. Edwards’s plan calls for immediately withdrawing 40,000 to 50,000 troops. Nearly all of the remaining American troops would be removed within 9 or 10 months. The only force that would remain would be a 3,500-to-5,000-strong contingent that would protect the American Embassy and possibly humanitarian workers.

Why would he advocate this plan now? Especially when the report continues,

American military commanders have publicly cautioned that a rapid withdrawal of troops risks a new escalation of sectarian violence, which has been substantially reduced in recent months. A National Intelligence Estimate on Iraq that was issued in January 2007 by the United States intelligence agencies also warned that the withdrawal of American troops over the ensuing 12 to 18 months would probably lead to “massive civilian casualties and forced population displacement.”

Don Surber says that this article “helped Edwards frame himself as the great pacifier” among the Democratic candidates. He also notes that Edwards actually wouldn’t advocate complete withdrawal until November 2009, about ten months into his presidency, but still, Edwards seems like one of the more anti-war Democratic candidates at this point. Jules Crittenden is a little more outraged by Edwards’s plan, calling it “Edwards’s Murrow plan, ‘Good night and good luck!'” Bryan at HotAir discusses the value of Edwards’s “plan”: “It makes no strategic sense but it does make some political sense. It’s an Iraq strategy that’s all about Iowa.” Of course, some of the lefty blogs seem to support Edwards’s plan, although one Huffington Post commenter urged him to “take a solid ‘get out of Iraq’ position,” as if this plan wasn’t one. Maybe John Edwards really does have a solid plan and a clear understanding of the situation in Iraq. Or perhaps he’s just getting desperate and is hoping to stealthily gain the anti-war vote. His campaign does seem to have some problems…

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