CNN

Does anyone KNOW what our mission in Iraq is at this point? "City on the Hill" democracy isn't happening and, in my opinion will NEVER happen. Bush's mission is to "win", but I say that is a "save face" strategy and nothing more. Let's make outr mission to get the heck out of Iraq.

Jack, it was a total mistake to go there in the first place. It is a totally different culture from ours we are dealing with. We need to get out of there immediately and bring our troops home. Bush/Cheney are the worse team to ever lead this country and a lot of young Americans have lost their lives for a useless war.

NO. Short and simple.

Jenny Rome Ga

Did anyone ever decide what is our mission in Iraq? If our mission is to defeat the ideals of Al Quadi it will take the return of Christ or the appearence of the new messiah. If our mission is to spread democracy to people who don't understand the concept, we'll have to provide a better example of it than the bush regime has done' for the last eight years. Right now they must think "democracy" is expansion by gunpoint.

It shows us that those who have seen the inside of her campain, don't like what they see.
The list of Clinton defectors is growing long.
Funny how there are no Obama defectors!

Gary, IN

First have Bush would have to guarantee the Iraqis 100% rights to their own oil, then pull the contracts from Cheney's two companies KBR and Halliburton. After doing this, Bush will have no reason for being over there. Then Bush couldapologize to the Iraqi people for his mistakes.

There is no way to really win this war for we've already lost. The terrorists did what they wanted to do, bankrupt the United States and take away our freedoms to fear, time to look at plan B.

GET OUT!

Not the way we are going, the more we fight the more young moslems from every country round the globe go to training camps to be suicide bombers, or to fight against us.Someone has to start a dialogue with Iran who could be helpful if they got someone to listen.We are not shown how many young americans die now. First they hid the caskets from view, now they hide the numbers. JS North Carolina

hi jack
as a veteran our mission in Iraq has been over but Bush dosent want his oil fields to be damaged,our troops are being killed by Iran not Iraq and Bush knows the truth and will not make Iraq take the lead in their own freedom.its all about oil.
clearwater,fl

Getting the hell out of there, it is religious war that will go on forever, they are not interested in peace, they don't know what the hell peace is, its time to bring our men and woman back home immediately!

Which mission is that Jack? They mission to bring our troups home. It will take a democrat in the White House. end of story.

The Iraq people have to be taught how to take care of themselves, become independent, and learn to do things on their own–something their last dictator never let his people do. Teaching them to become self-sufficient is the only way we'll ever get our mission accomplished.
But who in this United States government will decide when exactly, this mission is really over?

Jack, This question is impossible to aswer without further input.
The input needed? Just what is the "mission in Iraq" today?

Jack,
We already accomplished the mission several accomplishments ago. Saddam is no longer in power, there were no WMD, the Iraqis held electons, and they elected a government. If completing the mission means eliminating every last terrorist, we may as well declare Iraq the 51st state. For every terrorist we kill we exponentially create more. Bush's idea of a democracy in Iraq is a Starbuck's on every corner and Iraqi soccer moms hauling the kiddies around in a Chrysler mini-van.

Oh, my God–what a mess that is. I get depressed just thinking about it.

Let's pretend the "mission" is to leave a stable, democratic government in Iraq–one that will spread throughout the region. That's just not going to happen for a lot of reasons. The only answer is to get out now, not for selfish reasons, but for their own sake. They have to fix it themselves–Pottery Barn and all.

Boise

To quote Yogi Berra, "Be careful. If you don't know where you're going, you might not get there." If you could refresh me on what our mission was supposed to be and currently is, I might take a stab at this question. As it stands, I see only one action that could ever be deemed an accomplishment when it comes to Iraq: complete troop withdrawal. Now.

Jack,

Sure the mission in Iraq can be accomplished, the problem is nobody seems to know what it is.

Getting rid WMDs was the initial goal, along with deposing Saddam who might use said WMDs, oh and making sure Iraq was no longer a threat.

Well, there are no WMDs, Saddam is dead, and Iraq didn't have insurgents until they got rid of Saddam. Mission accomplished!

Mission change: make sure the country does not tear itself apart after Saddam is gone....never going to happen. The three ethnic groups in the country will fight...period. The longer the US is there the more of your soldiers will get caught in the cross-fire. Let your boys come home, let the fighting happen, and in the end there will be peace because the aggressors will all be dead or else they will figure out that killing each other is not the answer.

Bring back General Patton.

Leaving.

The original mission in Iraq was to save us from a mushroom cloud. Then the mission evolved into a search for WMD. After which, the rational for the mission became: fight them there so we don't have to fight them here. Now the mission seems to be, how do we extract ourselves from Iraq? So, to answer the question," leaving Iraq" is how we will accomplish our mission.

Jerry Wilson

I hate to answer a question with a question, but just what is our mission in Iraq? Don't worry if you don't know, Jack, because the President doesn't know either.

Ed Reed
Port Aransas, TX

No, We don't have a mission. The Iraq's cannot live in peace unless they are under a dictator.

It's an unwinnable war. The Middle East has roiled for millennia; why would our presence there - even if for 100 years - change anything?

What will it take to accomplish the U.S. mission in Iraq?

First and foremost Jack, we need Iraq to step up and begin to fulfil it's end of the bargin. They must take over security, reduce violence within the country, take the lead in rebuilding their country and begin to independently run their government right now in order for the mission to be accomplished.

we can't win a shadow mission if bush would just say that we are there for the oil fields and gas will go down to 1.50 a gallon then we would support the war because after all without oil we all are in big trouble just imagine no lights no cars no heat in the winter you get the pic obama 08

Clearly our mission in Iraq won't be accomplished until we run out of trees and can't print any more money.

Dick from Indiana

The trick is to rewrite the mission statement. If it's to exhaust our military might, abuse the Constitution, squander global goodwill, ignore the real enemy, pander fear, bankrupt our nation and make the Bush cronies unaccountably filthy rich.....

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!

David, from Cincinnati by way of NYC

The mission is not defined, therefore, it can not be accomplished.

I have 20 years as a veteran, one son that served 2 tours in Iraq and another there now. Never has there been a failure of leadership such as this. Bush keeps saying we are waging a war of ideologies implying that the other side has an agenda but we don't. Wars fought over ideologies don't have achievable objectives that's the lesson of Viet Nam and will be the lesson of Iraq once we get our heads out of the clouds and wake-up to the futility of this idiotic war.

Jack the most logical answer is: quit changing it!
Saddam's dead, no WMDs; we're done and should be out there. Their culture and traditions are way different from ours. They'll eventually make their country the way they want irregardless of what WE think.
If we're trying to make a clone of the USA, forget about it!

Jack, George Bush had only one mission in mind when he launched his unilateral and misguided war – namely, mislead Americans into an unfinished and unwinable war his daddy started. That fraud has already been accomplished.

Hi Jack:

What mission is that. We need a clearly defined mission first.

I doubt our involvement there is helping. We got rid of Sadam and company. Now our mission is clear. We need to get out before things really get bad over there.

Ron K. San Diego

That depends what the U.S. mission in Iraq is. Are we still after Sadam (sp)? Are we still after the WMD? Are we still after the low cost oil? Are we there to start indUStry? Makes my head spin. What are we doing there? If we are waiting to win, my next question is win what? Reconstruction is foolishness if the people we damaged don’t want to pitch in and they court their neighbors to keep the bloody mess going. It’s time to sneak home with our tail between our legs.

NO. Short and simple.

GET OUT

No. We are jumping from burning oil (Saddam) to the burning Fire (Iran). Shiites will dominate. Ahmedenajad will be stronger. Sunni's & Kurds will never be happy. The problems will get worse & US can't win.
Ca

What is the mission in Iraq? It is to keep feeding the "military-industrial complex". Ike warned us of this, and we have yet to pay attention to the fact that this is all about money to be made on the backs of the US taxpayers, and the lives of our children.

Only if someone can figure out what the mission IS.

This war is not a war of accomplishment. Our presence is not going to stabilize Iraq. We need to just get out and let the Iraqis figure out how to run their own country now that we have totally screwed it up. Bush and Chenney should be held responsible for destroying Iraq.

When you go into a war for all the wrong reasons you will never accomplish peace and that is what has happened. The American people were lied to about weapons of mass destruction(none to be found) and Saddam was the leader behind the 9/11 attacks (he wasn't) and there were no Al Queda in the nation until we took him out.

Jack: Which mission?

Spreading freedom, securing oil, fighting terrorism, engendering Democracy, stabilizing the region, fighting them over there so we don't have to fight 'em over here, WMDs...? Are we there to prop-up one Shi'a gang against another? Name the mission, and BushCo will find a way to make it worse.

What, exactly, is our mission? First it was the magical, disappearing WMDs, then it was getting rid of Sadam, now we've morphed "victory" into creating a western-style democracy. King George needs to tell the truth before he leaves office. It had nothing to do with weapons, tyrants or freedom and everything to do with oil. He's gotten his $4.00 a gallon gas so, I guess, "Mission Accomplished."

You can not accomplish a mission that has never been properly defined to begin with..

This fraud known as the occupation of Iraq perpetuated by the criminal Bush admisitration is the worst foreign policy in the history of America

Good Luck!! LOL

It will take Barack Obama, President of the United States to stand on an aircraft carrier with a banner behind him that reads "Mission Accomplished" and anounce that he his bringing the troops home.

Yeah, by getting the hell out of there.

Only if the rest of the world realizes that this unstable part of the world will eventually cause problems for their individual countries and joins the US in a world peace summit, outside of the United Nations. Unfortunately, (a) other countries are still wallowing in the pottery barn theory expecting America to clean up the mess it created and (b) America is still stuck with a leader whose too stubborn to accept any other solutions except his own. The situation reminds me of a Mexican standoff.

Probably a draft and another trillion dollars, not to mention about forty thousand more U.S. casualties, with heavy emphasis on draft! This all is assuming the Republicans maintain control of the government. With a different party in the White House, the mission will be to try so save as many lives as possible and to do that, they will need to exit quickly.

Mission? You mean there is a mission? But just in case there really is, I don't see an end in sight for the U.S. I thought we finished the job in 2003. Remember "Mission Accomplished?" We didn't finish then; what could possibly make anyone think we can finish now?

David
Prince George, VA

The mission was accomplished when Sadam was arrested. If the troops had been pulled out then, it would have forced the Iraqis to join the rest of the world or do what the US did a long time ago, have a civil war. With that war settled ( probably in a year or so) they could start rebuilding, and all those American lives would have been saved and the cripplings would never have happened.

First, we should define what our mission is. Do you know what it is? If so, please explain it to the rest of us.

What mission? There is no mission.

Wasn't the original mission supposed to be finding WMD in Iraq? Wasn't the next mission to bring democracy to Iraq? We killed Sadaam Hussein, and left a power vacuum, and now Iran is filling that vacuum. If Sadaam were still in power, there would be no terrorists in Iraq, and Iran would be quiet as a mouse.

Weren't we supposed to be done with reconstruction by now? Why are the lights on in Iraq only half the time?

Wasn't reconstruction supposed to be funded by Iraqi oil profits? They have the profits, but they're not going toward reconstruction.

Weren't we supposed to be done training the Iraqi soldiers so they can defend their own country? Why are so many of them deserting, or switching sides with the insurgency?

There is only one mission that we should accomplish in Iraq.
G.T.F.O!

No. No. No. No.
And it is time for the troops to come home.

Since we have not yet found WMD, and Saddam Hussein is no longer a threat to the US, it's simple....declare victory, and leave.

But wait, didn't Bush do that 5 years ago? He just misremembered the last part.

Jack !! Exactly what IS our mission in IRAQ ??? Has that concept ever been enunciated? No !!! Right now, from MY point of view, our mission is to get OUT of there as quickly as decently as we can.
But don't hold your breath. Mary from Sarasota, FL

Yes! Sound's Crazy. But, Yes....

Assuming we're going to have a military presence there regardless, I guess the question is who and how many people are going to get maimed or killed, and for what exactly? Obviously, we need a better relationship with the regional players.

What is the price of a gallon of gas today at your local gas station? How much profit are the big oil companies making every second that it takes you to read these words? Could you live on the net amount that they made during the time it took you to read these sentences? Do a little simple research, then do the math. You will then hold the answer to all questions about the "Iraqi mission" in your hands.

No Jack, The mission in Iraq was always a losing proposition. Bush & Cheney need to be arrested & sent to the Hague to stand trial for "Crimes Against Humanity" & if not they both should be arrested here to stand trial for crimes against the United States.
Patricia
Palmdale, Ca.

The mission has been accplished for five years now Jack. Remember Pres. Bush standing triuphantly in front of the Mission Accomplished banner on carrier USS Abraham Lincoln exactly five years ago. And if McCain is elected we can expect the mission to be accomplished for 100 more years.

Since our "Commander in Chief" George Dubya Bush made the statement in July 2003, "BRING EM ON!! ", I can't think of any way out of this abiss. There seems to be an endless line of Al Quadi fighters waiting in line for the virgins up above. The Bush/Chenney War has hurt this Nation more than we will ever realize. How do you get back the 4,000+ lives that have died for the ego of this sorry administration.

If mecain the great is elected we gonna wait another 100 years. If the young president ie is obama is elected we gonna move next year.

Lisa

dallas

Jack,
That depends on what mission your talking about. The cover mission, which is a half hearted humanitarian effort where billions of US taxpayer money is being flushed down the toilet at an incredible rate. Or the real mission where the oil rich Bush family cashes in on thousands of American lives while at the same time leaving a bruised and battered America laying on the steps of the White House for the next President to pick up. Either way I think Bush has accomplished both, it's time for another banner.

What mission? Get out now.

It will take another couple years of monetary and military support for the Iraqis to get fully on their feet.

Bush's troop surge seems to have brought the violence level down. Are the insurgents biding their time? I don't think we can answer that. But for the moment things have calmed down, more or less.

We must remember that it takes time to establish a working, self sufficient democracy. The American Revolution ended in 1781. We did not have a functional Constitution in place until 1788.

Even then we faced problems from the British. They antagonized American shipping and encouraged Native Americans to rise up against our new nation. Not until after the War of 1812 (Battle of New Orleans ended the conflict in 1815) did we finally see some semblance of peace and stability. 1781 until 1815... that's 34 years of instability.

We forged our nation on our own. The Iraqis have a bigger advantage because they have the United States helping them to face their problems.

Monetary support, military support, and patience will achieve the goals for Iraq.

Hi Jack,

Seven years into this war, I'm still not sure what our mission is supposed to be. Our presence in Iraq has been responsible for the destruction of one of the most beautiful cities in the world, Baghdad, and the destruction of the normal way of life for the Iraqi people. If oil was our goal, we certainly didn't succeed there–with the price of a barrel of oil higher than it has ever been before. I think we need to load up the troops and the humvees and head for home. The Iraqi people will probably cheer and throw rose petals in our path as we leave.

Jack Just what is the mission? I think Bush just wants to save his oil fields. We will NEVER change these people and if they came over here we would not change either. We just need to get out now before any more of our brave soldiers are killed or hurt.
Dorothy Lucasville Ohio

Jack, The timeline depends on what you declare the mission to be. If it's enough stability for us to declare victory and leave without total chaos resulting, that's probably a few years away. If it's turning Iraq into a stable democracy, the we need several generations. Japan and Germany had little or no democratic experience prior to the end of WWII. It took a generation of occupation to change the populations' mindset. It can be done, but the American public hasn't got the patience to get the job done.

Hell Jack, if I had the answer to that question I'd be hitting the Powerball on a regular basis, moving my company overseas, and living a life of splendor and debauchery without paying any taxes to the United States. And no, I do not work at Halliburton.

just what is the mission? I really really would love for the media to ask this question to our idiot president....and DO NOT let him deviate to another subject....make him answer THE question. He gets away with way too much at press conferences....he should be made to answer the questions he is asked. This war makes me sick... I can hardly stand to watch the news. It is so sad that one idiot's ego has to be spared and all these soldier's die to protect his ego....sad state of affairs.

We continue to bail out the Iraqi military with American blood when ever they get into a bind, we bail out the Iraqi government with more U.S. cash to rebuild their country instead of using their own oil revenues while our Republican leaders in Washington promise to be there for them for the next 100 (or so) years.

The only way we can complete our "Mission???" in Iraq is by doing the same thing we would do with unruly teenagers at home....TOUGH LOVE...set a timetable for them to face the reality that THEY are responsible their own future, not the U.S. Military or the U.S. Taxpayers.

Freedom is not free and it is time for an end to the free lunch program in Iraq.

No, Because we don't even what the mission is anymore because Bush and his band of thugs keep moving the goal post. It's time to end Bush's personal vendetta in Iraq and bring the troops home. We have so many problems here in this country we need to fix. Such as finally nationalizing the oil companies in this country so that we can prevent the price-gouing, record profits and corporate greed that has become so prevelant under this terrible unelected regime.

I assume the mission was to get their oil and the answer to that is simple.Never.

650 000 brave men and women out of a population of 300 million are fighting the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan; 83 000 of these were stop lose.....some are on their fourth and even fifth tour....I would like to know what they think their mission is.

It's kind of hard to answer that with Bush changing the definition of "victory" every couple of weeks. If we're looking to make a stable and peaceful democracy, then no, we can't accomplish that. If we're looking to just extend this out until January and then blame the new guy (or girl) when it all falls apart, then yes, we're on track for that.

Can our mission in Iraq be accomplished??? What mission? Do we have a mission? Why are we there? How will we know when we are done being there? Is it over when everyone is dead or when our creditors stop loaning us money to fight the "war"?

The reasons of war by the Bush Administration: 1. Sadam had weapons of mass destruction, 2. Sadam was a tyrrant, 3. Sadam supported Al Queda.

We removed, then killed Sadam, found no weapons of mass destruction and found no link with Al Queda.

The mission has been accomplished. Our soldiers should not be dying trying to police a civil war. They need to come home now and we should focus on Afghanistan the real war on terror.

The mission, as I think I understand it, is to build the "Republic of Exxon" With the price of oil and gas at the current level along with all the U.S. dollars beign given to this new country I think the "Mission Acomplished" sign can go up anytime along with the "For Sale" sign that is already hanging on every corner of America.

It will take more lies, innocent american lifes, more money, bad ecconomy and more mission accomplished phrases.

Well lets look at the possible goals: If the mission was to make sure that Iraq no longer has WMD.... we did that; If the mission was to de-throne Sadam... we did that; If the mission was to introduce Iraq to democracy... we did that; and If the mission was to make tons of money for Halliburton.... we did that too.....

As I see it Jack.... "Mission Accomplished"

The mission should be changed to an exit strategy and we could then accomplish it by leaving.

Jack, the mission in Iraq was to gain control of the flow of middle east oil. Signs that we have failed are beginning to show up at the pump. The big three are behind in saturating the market with flex fuel vehicles because of influences by the oil companies, look at their profits. One thing we have been able to do in Iraq is test our latest military hardware. We always need updates and statistics on accuracy and durability. Looking forward to a new season of "Future Weapons"

Kevin
Warren, MI

The best way to end this is to Impeach Bush, Cheney and anybody else that had anything to do with this war for profit.

After you strategically and safely BRING MY SON HOME.

STOP the "mission creep".

the original "mission" was to remove Saddam and destroy any WMD's that he had. the American military DID THAT in less than two months and we should have then DEPARTED like we did after the first Gulf War.

everything since the completion of the original "mission" has been about American Oil Companies CONTROL of the OIL which many Americas now suspect was Bush, Cheney and the NeoCons REAL "original mission". after all, didn't the NeoCon Paul Wolfowitz say that "OIL will PAY for the WAR"?

our Militrary has DONE it's JOB and, with a reported 80 BILLION dollar oil revenue surplus, the Iraqis can AFFORD to take CARE of THEMSELVES. with our economic problems here at home, federal deficits AND falling dollar, the American People can no longer AFFORD to bankroll the Iraqis.

time to BRING our brave troops HOME. they have DONE their JOB and it's time to STOP poring money down the Iraqi Rathole.

It will take Mr. Flip-Flop McCain, more lies, innocent american lifes, more money, bad ecconomy and more mission accomplished phrases

Jack, the country will develop –either according to Western ideas or dominated by islamic fundumentalists - as are the wishes of the government and its citizens. When we try to impose our own ideas throughout the world against the will of the native population(s), we always fail.
Our best and only course of action is to leave iraq and let its people decide the future. We must stop trying to be the world's policeman there are throughout the globe.

Nukes.

It will never be accomplished because we had an idiot for a leader with an axe to grind, no common sense, and many of his patriots making money off of this war. As I told my wife 6 years ago when I met her that George Bush was an idiot, it finally has been confirmed via polls and history that will forever say that he was the worst president in American history. Thank the moronic Republican voters and outdated electoral college that put this man in office. A Disgrace!!!

Wildwood Crest, NJ

Jack,

I would like to answer your question with a quesiton. Just what is our mission in Iraq? How can you accomplish a mission when you really do not know what the mission is? There have been so many versions of what we are there for that I do not believe anyone can answer that question right now. First it was to rid the world of a tyrant that was killing his own people right and left. Then it was to put in place and prop up a government of choice? Then it was to defeat all those terrorists that moved in from other countries that saw the opportunity to kill Americans. Now, who knows what the mission really is, maybe we should poll the "Iraqi people" and see what they really think.

Mission has already been accomplished for some time now. Bush's oil buddies have made a killing at the american taxpayers expense and Cheney's Haliburton buddies have made a killing at the american taxpayers expense. MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!!!

It cannot be done. Only an idiot would believe that Iraq could unite under our puppet government. It took a strong leader like Saddam to keep all the factions apart.. You may not like it but most countries cannot survive under an elected government.
"Daddy " Bush knew this and rightly stopped when he did. Even though he invited Saddam to invade Kuaitt, Most of his Adminstration wanted to continue, they got their wish when "Junior" was selected.
Now look at the mess we are in. The Bush name is still "sullied".
Ike had it right don't let the Millitary industrial complex run the country as they do now.

A Democrat in the White House

Is that a serious question? There's no way for the US to be victorious in Iraq. We never should've been there in the first place. The arrogance of the Bush Administration has made it virtually impossible.

What mission?

Already, we've established the biggest 'beachhead' in Baghdad with our monstrous embassy. It probably dwarfs the Kremlin.

George W. Bush has kept 'our mission' there a big secret, so he can continue this insane conflict.

The most optimistic opinion I've heard from any candidate is that we'll be there for another hundred years – or whenever the embassy walls crumble – whichever comes first..

The only mission that will be accomplished is the ousting of the political party that got us into this mess. Their ineptness is now on the table for all of us to view.

If "our" mission was to throw out a brutal but stabilizing regime there, and thus to allow Al-Qaeda, Iran and other lunatic fundamentalist killers a free hand in Iraq, then by golly, MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!!!!

What similar feats will we perform if McCain is elected? Start World War III???

there is no mission left in iraq.saddam is dead and gone.who came up with the big idea of remaining there forever,anyways?oh yeah,it was bush,the 2nd grader,from texas,and his buddy cheney,and his buddy rumsfeld,and right down to democrats who authorized this war,in the first place.when the un comes up with international indictments for war crimes ,by the us government,obama will be the only candidate able to avoid prosecution.

Mission Accomplished – We're outta there!

If by the mission you mean to secure Iraq, neutralize the terrorists, and have a stable democratic state, then NO, not in a million years. But if you mean the mission where we remake the Iraqi economy to benefit U.S. companies, control their so-called independent government, and make billions from taxpayer funded reconstruction, then YES. Mission accomplished. This war was never about terrorists, WMD, freedom, security or any of the crap that came from the guys with the flag pins in their lapels. This was an economic takeover of an oil-rich nation. To couch it in any other terms would be aiding and abetting the real enemy, the Neocons and oil barrons.

The mission as defined by Bush to bring Democracy to Iraq was unachievable because it was done with a gun stuck in the Iraqis face and the invasion was made possible with a bold face lie. We have lost 47 of our soldiers in April and a large number of Iraqis perished. It is so time to get out of Iraq. The only mission we have accomplished is destruction of that country.

Which mission Jack?!!

Our troop's can acomplish any mission that is set for them!
The problem is President Bush and company keep changing it almost every other month or so!!

L-E-A-V-E.

What is our mission in Iraq?

Seriously, I don't know anymore because Bush changes it everyday.

The mission in Iraq will never be accomplished because it was a faulty one. The best we can do is begin to pull out. That would be the best accomplishment for America at this time.

Well Jack the best way to answer your question is to assess what has transpired so far:

You've proven Democracy doesn't feed the bull dog. Hamas was democratically elected in Gaza but you don't dare talk to them so that part is done.

A whole generation of Iraqi's have pretty much been wiped out so that part is done.

You have strenghtened Iran and made them a major power in the Middle East so that part is done.

You've created excellent recruitment propaganda for terrorism and given Al Quieda a good foot hold in the country so that part is done.

You can now go to a market in Iraq with only a couple of platoons of soldiers guarding you so that part is done.

You've managed to create reasoning for oil price increases from $28.00 a barrel to well over a $100.00 a barrel so that part is done.

You've mortgaged your country to China & the Middle East countries so that part is done.

You've managed to fatten the pockets of all your needy corporations like Haliburton, Blackwater etc. as well as the major oil companies so that part is done.

You have proven to all the countries in the world that you can violate International laws and the Geneva Convention without your administration being held accountable so that part is done.

I guess all that's left is for you to elect John McCanin and bomb, bomb, bomb Iran and then it will be "MISSION ACCOMPLISHED"!

It would help to know what out mission in Iraq is. It used to be get Saddam, but what is it now? This is a major reason why most Americans don't support it..

This whole "Mission" thing is wrong in the first place. We can not go to other countries and try to accomplish our needs and call them "Mission". Whatever mission that must be accomplished should be defined by the people of Iraq. It is their country. Mission for Iraq should be their mission not ours. And may be we can help them to achieve it without getting bankrupt. But I don't think anyone really knows what that mission is.

Nuwan from Houston, TX

If the mission was to remove Saddam from power and eliminate WMDs then it was accomplished when Bush long ago put up the banner MISSION ACCOMPLISHED. We should have began immediate draw down from that point.

Our mission should not be nation building.

I'm not sure I ever heard a mission statement. Something about making Bush's father proud (he isn't) and Halliburton rich (they are).

Jack you have to define exactly what the mission is before you will come up with an answer for your question. Iraq has been liberated. that mission is complete. Insurgents and violence are on going and will continue until the United States is gone from the middle east. It may even continue then but we won't have to be a part of it. America imposed democracy on a country that didn't ask for it nor was prepared to deal with it. The Iraqi government will always be one over throw away from a disaster. It has been that way for centuries. You CAN NOT impose western ways on a country that does not subscribe to western philosophy nor should we have tried to. We would not tolerate Iraq or some other country invading America to impose their way of life on us.

Jack, no one knows what the US mission is in Iraq. I say get out, get out now!

Jack, accomplishing the mission in Iraq will require a number of things, to happen. Iraq must pay for, with their oil revenues, all of their reconstrucion projects, as well as, the salaries, of their military and police forces. We must seal border, with Iran and deal harshly, with any Iranian military influence. Iran is our enemy and is directly responsible, for American deaths. When this is accomplished, we can rationally discuss the draw down, of American forces and focus, on Afghanistan. American's have payed the ultimate price and we cannot cut and run, no matter how some would like to.

I'm proud of our armed forces. Not in that cheesy, nationalistic way that most idiotic Americans are... But I'm proud of them because they've stuck it out this far, with the hope that when a new President is elected, they finally get to go home. Can you imagine how many soldiers, not just hearing this type of news but seeing it for themselves, feel disparaged or depressed at the war effort? Kudos to our soldiers, for hanging in there.

Hey Jack,

Bush shoul'd take a page out of the clinton's playbook!
Say wer're winning even even if the math doesn't add up!

OOPS! He's been doing that all along.

Nevermind!

declare its world war 3 which it is only no one wants to admit it , get after the terrorest and wipe them out they wont change there mind so wipe them out . But we need the rest of the world to help us we can not do it alone,we can not do it alone

Come on Jack, how can we answer this question when “Washington” (the consensus of the entire Congress, Pentagon and White House) doesn’t really have a clue on what it is we want to accomplish? If it is one of Iraq determining the political future of their country, Sen. Clinton and Sen. Obama are probably correct that the only way to accomplish that is to basically get out. If it is one of some sort of military victory or having a political solution with our troops trying to maintain some level of order until that happens, I am not sure it can be accomplished. I think that in this latter case, it will end up being another Viet Nam where we eventually leave in defeat and disgrace.

Saddam Husein is gone. Mission Accomplished. Give the Iraqis the timetable for departure so they'll know when they will be on their own, pack up and wave "good-bye". If Halliburton wants to stay, they can start sending the bills to Al-Maliqui. It's about time they spent some of that oil money that 4064 of our troops have died for to save for them.

What mission?

Just what President Bush and Senator John McCain have said, "Stay the course." Keep 130,000 US troops and an equal number of "private security" personnel in Iraq. Why already Iraq is selling billions of dollars worth of oil. Our new U. S. Embassy is nearing completion. When opened it will be the largest and most secure U. S. Embassy in the world. As President Bush said just six short years ago, "mission accomplished." Senator McCain will sustain the accomplishments, as he has said, "for 100 years, if necessary."

What an easy question. First thing to do is to define whatever the mission is and then stick to it. Then we can accomplish the stated goal.

Jack, ...MISSION ABORTED, time for our troops to come home. We will never win over there, and sadly, we must lose more soldiers lives to pay the price of this tragic mistake by Bush, Hillary, and Congress.

Mission Accomplished????? Did we miss something in the Translation, Jack?

Hey Jack, Please, for the sake of all the young brave soldiers that have given their lives (4000 plus and counting) and the 30,000 wounded first tell us: "What the dog gone Mission was is" Then Mr. Cafferty ask your question! Hey Jack we love you but really pal, the mission was never defined was it?

David
Dartmouth NS

I'll be glad to give you an answer as soon as someone can tell me what exactly the mission is. Remember when it was all about WMD's? I have a pretty good idea that the only real objective now is to 'stay the course' until GWB is safely back in Crawford.

The opportunity to accomplish any mission in Iraq was when the Iraq Study Group made it's findings which pretty much summed up what bridges we needed to build in the Mideast, not just Iraq. Since then we have burned all those bridges down and now the only bridge is to nowhere, but out.

To leave Iraq and send our soldiers back home. The mission is to make sure our soldiers are taking care of when they come home and giving all veterans who fought in Iraq free scholarships to go to college. Free health care insurance. And respect.

Bush has and had no idea what our mission was in Iraq. Bush has no knowledge of the economy, foreign policy, on and on. He breaks everything he touches, and should go and pack his bags and sit in a corner and keep his mouth shut, nobody is listening to him anyway, until it is time to go back to his ranch. I have turned my TV or radio everytime he is to speak, he knows nothing and says nothing.

Hi Jack:

What mission is that? The last clearly defined mission we had in Iraq was to find Sadam and bring and convict him for his crimes against humanity. Well that being said, could you tell me why we are still there? Is it the Oil? I could care less about Iraq's oil. They can have it..

We need to let them fend for themselves. The US Government should stop playing "BIG BROTHER" here. We don't own that country and never will. If the people that inhabit that land can't learn to work and play well together, Is that the fault of the US?

Ron K. San Diego

As one who has supported the war, I doubt that we can accomplish much more than we have now. The Iraqi army and police force seem to be either untrainable, or just unwilling to stand up and defend themselves. I am finally tired of this war, and to think we can do anything else for them at this point seems unrealistic. Lets hand the Iraqi army the keys to the country, and get our troops home to defend our own borders.

1st – We impeach Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, etc., for HIGH TREASON; (remember from your History classes how treasoners were SHOT in a firing line?);

2nd – We elect Obama for President. Since he's got the most logical, common sense solutions to the majority of our problems out of the 3 Candidates & let him begin the MUCH needed repairs to things like our Constitution, infrastructure, World Relations,the economy, etc.;

3rd – We tell the Iraqi govt. that we will pull out ALL troops IMMEDIATELY if they don't repay us for SOME of our financial loses from their $70 billion in oil profits. PLUS, that it's time for them to stand on their on feet & fight for their own Country;

4th – Then, we GET OUT & bring our loved ones home and start repairing OUR own Country!

How's that for a start?

Obama – '08

Jack,
At one point ,the GW administration said the mission was to capture S. Hussein…
If the administration is not sure, and they have all the pertinent information, then the public, like myself; is basically clueless as to what to do.

This should be part of the theme in the election - Mission Accomplished:

(1) Winning two elections with less than a majority of the popular vote. Mission accomplished.

(2) Gas prices tripled with record profits for oil companies. Mission accomplished.

(3) A weaker economy. Mission accomplished.

(4) Record home foreclosures. Mission accomplished.

(5) A weaker dollar. Mission accomplished.

(6) Invasion of a country to find WMD but none found. Mission accomplished (with a little help from HRC).

(7) Increasing spending overseas for food, housing and medical care for Iraqis, Afghanis and other poverty stricken recipients of foreign aid. Mission accomplished.

(8) Parents find it more difficult to pay for college tuition. Mission accomplished.

(9) Working families find it more difficult to make ends meet with rising gas and food prices. Mission accomplished.

(10) Repeatedly telling the public that this is not a recession; times are just tough; this is a market correction. Mission accomplished.

(11) Declaring “Mission accomplished” five years and 4,000 lives ago.

So much was accomplished, and so much must be undone.

Not if no one can define what the mission is or what determines success.

Clarification as to what the true mission was/is. Is it WMD? Is it revenge for 9/11? Or is is it oil? In any case calarification of the mission is essential. Could someone please tell me what the mission was/is?

Bonnie
Annapolis, MD

Jack, the sad thing is that if the war had been handled right from the beginning then we wouldn't even need to be asking this question. Of course when the war was beginning I knew it was a bad idea. I don't know if there is anything we can really do to accomplish the mission in Iraq, but I do know that we definitely need to ramp up the pressure on the Iraqi people to start standing on their own. The fact that 1,000 of them ran away while U.S. soldiers were fighting and dying for them is appalling. Perhaps worst of all is the injustice the Bush administration did to all of the people who died on September 11th, 2001, not to mention their families who have to deal with that lose every day, by diverting the full force of the U.S. military from tracking down and bringing to justice every single member of al qaeda. Instead he's lead us on a pointless war that has only caused the death of more Americans, and more pain for American families.

First we have to define the mission is it to boost the companies of Texas profits mission accomplished. Maybe it was to destablized the middle-east so oil prices can soar mission accomplished. Of course Karl Rove wanted Bush to be re-elected in 2004 mission accomplished. Now maybe we where trying to take a muslim country and make it a democratic christian nation well that mission will take a couple of thousand years.

Mission Statement for Iraq... "Spend Taxpayer money on the military industrial complex and ensure that military rebuilding programs are in place, that will require continued taxpayer payments, well into future administrations".

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!!!!

Harry
Ky.

Jack,

If the objective of the Iraq mission, which encompasses not only military, but religious, political and financial (oil) factors, is constantly revised in reaction to an ever-changing set of circumstances unforseen by the US government, how can it ever be accomplished? More importantly, the mission in Iraq is inextricably linked to other neighbouring countries that include Iran, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, Syria and Turkey. So, until the US can effectively draw up and execute a plan that incorporates all these factors WITH the cooperation of all players, the mission will never be realized.

The missions have already been accomplished Jack. The Military-Industrial Complex and the Neo-Cons are just squeezing every last bit of revenue they can out of the situation before it changes.

Mission has been accomplished!! Bush removed Saddam and therefore eliminated Iraq from keeping Israel on check; we have replaced Saddam (Baath party) with a puppet regime (so far); we divided the country by creating sectarian fighting among the Sunni & Shia’s when there was none before and thus would never be militarily strong to keep Israel from expanding it’s borders. To privatize Iraq’s oil fields? Bush is working on this
The questions is, once we leave will Iraq be a friend or foe?

the USA never had a mission in Iraq Jack... We were lied to about the exact mission by GWBush he fed off the fear and hatred this nation had for the arab world and got us in there ASAP (and he still didnt get impeached) Anyways, The real question should be "what will take to accomplish George Bush and Dick Cheney's mission in Iraq?"
-And the answer is a gutless congress!
So "Mission Accomplished" was accurate, but not the mission we were lied to about.

The US troops must NOT leave. They should now change from a fighting mode to a protective mode, and leave the fighting to the Iraquis from now on. The US should encourage the Iraquis to build up their own military, and help with their training under US supervision. The Iraquis have now plenty of oil money (70 billion per year at last count) to finance their own defence force.

First, define the mission.

It's gonna take a little something known as a Delorean so we can go back in time (a la Back to the future) and change our mission.

Ohio

How about if we start by defining "Mission Accomplished?"

An open ended commitment, which is what we have now, will never be accomplished. But, while draining our treasury, we will continue to line the pockets of the corporations that have received the government contracts involved in this "mission never accomplished".

It would take all of the Troops to come home that is the only way we can say we won jack Because how can you say you won if your Opponent is an ever evolving force there is no way we can say we won there Jack because any gain is only temporay that is the words of our General Petraeus

Jack, To accomplish the mission in Iraq, the "mission " will have to be changed. The "mission" as articulated by the President was ill conceived, poorly planned, and horribly mismanaged. It has become a "money pit" for Iraq and American carpetbagers. The evil and greed exposed by this conflict will go down in history as the largest blunder ever made by a free society. And we are and will continue to pay the price for years.

Get the troops from over there because there were never weapons of mass destruction over there.

Jack

That " Mission Accomplished" banner should go down in history
right along side Rev Wright into the trash bin. Does anyone know
during April, while the media was fixed on Rev. Wright there were
47 of our bravest soldiers killed in Iraq and not one mention
on cable news. That tells me something.

Jerry
Roselle, Illinois

Well first we have to accomplish the mission here Jack, get rid of Bush and replace him with a Democrat.........The mission in Iraq then becomes to safely get our troops out of there as soon as possible....with the emphasis on the safety for the troops not the iraqui people.......they'd love nothing more than for us to stay and fight and die for them and all the while pay to rebuild their country while ours falls further back and they stockpile their money....time to wake up and get out.......they have enough money now if they need training let them buy it

Another easy one, Jack...change the mission. If the mission had been to dethrone and kill Saddam it would be complete, and our "Great Leader" would have a different legacy for the history books.
Hartwell, GA

I agree with many contributors who said that the mission was flawed from the beginning since to my understanding meant we would neutralize weapons of mass destruction that threatened the USA and other nations not at peace with Iraq. Since none have been found our mission was a wild goose chase right from the get go. And boy oh boy has it gotten wilder since. The mission seems to have evolved into making Iraq stable enough for our withdrawal. That goal can only be accomplished with either cooperation of the Iraqi people or by a total takeover of the Iraqi government. Since neither seems likely, I think we have all the earmarks of: Mission Impossible!!! Doo doo, doo doo doo doo.... I miss the happy endings of my youth!

Get out now. Don't pass GO, don't collect $200 – worthless – dollars. Then impeach Bush and Cheney, and, lastly, vote out every politician other than Ron Paul, and those that show similar sense.

What exactly is our "mission" in Iraq? Destroy a country who's leader and citizens did nothing to us? If that was the mission then yes, mission accomplished.

1 Elect a woman president that will help show that in america a women can inspire to be president of the Untied States effectively the most powerful person in the world, that will help with,
2 Capturing the heart and minds of the women in the countries that support radical islum and the supression of women and
3 support and encourage a maternal feminism movment were all women in all countries, stand up and demand there place in determine their destines the destines of their children and families and
4 stop using so darn much oil.

It would take all of our troop out of Iraq and then us telling the Iraqis here is 30,000 troops to help Train you military and that would be sucess if we did not have 140,000 Troops in that war.

What do you think has been happening in the past five years? Iraqis are tearing the Country apart now – what difference will it make if we leave and they continue to tear the Country apart.
Iraqi is draining the pocketbooks of the good decent Americans and bankrupting our Country – and one would wager they are enjoying same.
Our job was done and Bremer and his cohorts came in and prolonged the war (for what reason – as in past wars we might have some deliberate actions to keep the war going).
4050 USA families destroyed because of stupidity on our End, and another 29,000 USA familes damaged – how much more ? I say "NO MORE".
Jack c

Happy Mission Accomplished Day!

Jack

Mission was acomplished!! There were no Weapons of Mass Destruction or Iraqi goverment harboring terrorist. Support the troops.... Ban the sale of O.P.E.C OIL in America. We can fight this war without guns if we don't give them our hard earned money. It's high time America put on ther long pants and act like men again!

I don't believe there ever was a mission other than to line the pockets of several crony businessmen and drive the price of gas up over $4/gallon. The more gas costs the more money the Bush's make. The average member of the General Public isn't even in touch with the day to day happenings in Iraq. There is an idiotic percentage of peple who believe if we don't fight the enemy in Iraq that we will have to war against them after they mobilize and invade on our soil. The mission should be to develop an exit plan and execute it. Let the Iraqis fight their own war which they have been doing for hundreds of years. Secure our borders and prevent all the excess baggage pouring into our country day after day and stop ruining the economy of the U.S.

This is a stupid question unless you define the mission.
Since the mission was never defined, except, "We have to fight them over there so they don't come here",
your question is not based in reality.

Well a good start would be knowing what mission we are trying to accomplish. Originally we went in to remove the WMDs, then it was for regime change, now it's to foster democracy or maybe it's to stop the terrorists.

The President has treated Iraq like Jeopardy, where the answer is "Mission Accomplished" and now everyone is trying to figure out what the actual question was.

Since "mission" in the dictionary means "act of sending", which we unfortunately have done with with our troops, I say "mission accomplished" will be when we finally bring them home from this uncalled for war.

Jack,

What will it take? Figure out what the mission is and then maybe someone can figure out what it will take to accomplish it.

First tell me what the mission is. Then I'll decide if it can be accomplished. You've put the Cart before the Horse

When the congressional inquisition that took place last month couldn't even get a definition as to what our mission is. I don't see why we just can't say its accomplished. Just pick a date ,maybe october and hooray for McCain. Maybe December and leave the Democrats with the ecconomy to pry out of disaster. Just so long as we all understand the decider was always right. The republicans really don't care. If they didn't make their fortunes in the last eight years. the're dumber than we are.

What the hell is our mission in Iraq?! Everytime this administration has set a goal, three months later they move it three months farther out and lower the bar. We should have kept Bush to his word when he declared “Mission accomplished” from the deck of the USS Abraham Lincoln.

Yes it can,but we can't use our kids to keep shielding the real crooks in the region, Saudi Arabia,Dubai,Syria and Iran come to mind.As long as we continue to shield these corrupt regimes from the violence they have slyly supported throughout the region,you'll never have peace there.

The only way we can accomplish the mission is to have a clear mission statement. In my opinion that woul be;To remove our troops safely and to tell the Iraquis that they must now stand on their own two feet and work to rebuild their own country. While I have great concern for the blood shed that will follow when we leave, I have greater concern for the blood shed by U.S. men and women who are there now. We need to be working towards repairing the bodies, minds and souls of those brave soldiers and their families; it's a far better use of our treasure than worrying about the Bush legacy.

First we need to know exactly what the mission is? If it was to destroy Saddam Hussein then Hooray for Bush, mission accomplished. Now what should we do next Mr. Bush? "Uh, I don't know let me ask Cheney?

The mission was never really defined. Put whatever label you want on it. But after trillions of dollars spent and the thousands of soldiers that have been lost and seriously hurt, it has been implicitly redefined as a critically bad, if not criminal, choice. We don't need any more banners with slogans promoting war, just end it now.

Jack,
I agree with Susan in Twentynine Palms, CA. GWB has never been able to come up with a sensible mission statement with which the rest of us are in agreement. If the goal can't be agreed upon, how can we ever accomplish it?

It will take Barack Obama.

Bush and Bush II have no credibility. Barack will be seen as an honest broker with no agenda of taking the oil, or crusading against other religions.

Our Mission will be accomplished when we leave Iraq. Then it becomes the burden of the Iraqi's to accomplish their own mission. We have lost too many young people as it is. Staying will only serve to enable Iraq to continue to be complacent.

In case no one has noticed, the "mission" was accomplished in a few
weeks. Anytime you invade a country, defeat its military, take down its government, and imprison its leader.... YOU WIN! Every goal was achieved: confirmed there were no weapons of mass destruction, Hussein executed, confirmed Iraq had nothing to do wityh 9/11. It's this miserable occupation that has failed. But Bush and his cronies want to continue to call it a "war", one that the U.S. must not lose. Bull! It was over five years ago.

Nope. I relate it to the revolutionary war between the british and the colonies. The iraqies are the colonies and we are the british now. We will lose and it's about time we conserve our losses.

Jack,
I didn't know there was a mission. Further, success or lack of is not obvious and has to be explained to us by analysts. How can Generals appointed by the Bush Administration give us an objective account of what is happening because it is viewed through a single lens and does not take into account the economic, global or full military picture? I have heard the word "success" too many times and I'm not buyin' it. The mission was wrong, flawed and poorly implemented from the start and continues to result in death to our troops, our treasury and our resources. Whether success or failure, it's time to get out. Call it what you like.
Linda, Woodbury, NJ

I knew from the begining that this was a bogus war. My heart bleeds for the young people who are in Iraq. I have gotten to the point that all of those who think Iraq is worth it should join the military, but they won't because they are cowards. I am a Vietnam Vet and I know what it feels like to be sent to a war for no reason !!!!!!!!!!! I want to hear from the Iraq war supporters, tell me WHY WON'T YOU GO AND FIGHT THIS DUMB WAR ?

Elect Barack Obama in November. You know Bush was probably correct at the time...whatever the mission of the day was 5 years ago it was probably accomplished. There have been so many "missions" in Iraq they have become nothing but 'the flavor of the day' for Bush/Cheney

30% believe Hillary is honest. 39% believe Hillary is trustworthy. 60% believe Obama is honest and trustworthy. How hard is your decision?

The U.S. State Department, in 1945, described Middle East oil as "a stupendous source of strategic power, and one of the greatest material prizes in world history" America now has permanent military bases there. The banner wasn't wrong Jack: "Mission Accomplished"

Dave
Ottawa

it can't be accomplished! thousands of years of history has shown us this. we need to pull back and invest some of the resources we are wasting in Irag on our highway infrastructure, our health care services, and repairing our education facilities here at home. if we do that, with a "fraction" of what we are spending over there, our economy can't help but improve with the jobs we will create here at home

No. We don't belong there.

"Wunderkind" said that it was all wrapped-up, 5 years ago! He and Rumsfeld thought that seizing the oil-fields of Iraq and the poppy-fields of Afghanistan would be "duck soup"! What they didn't foresee was that people who live in those countries had other ideas... No, I don't think there's any hope, since America, for once, has taken-on an "enemy" who will not roll over and play dead, on cue! Islamic zealotry and its adherents cannot be bought-off, like the Iraqi legislators, and that "clotheshorse" in Afghanistan, Hamid Karzai! They have been fighting for centuries with Allah urging them on, and have now dealt the US in as another eternal foe, which in their minds, must be vanquished, at all cost. This is no stale John Wayne movie, with its requisite "happy ending". This is the US stepping into something which will be impossible to clean-off of its "shoes"...

if the mission was to break america's back we can stand proud today and say mission accomplished

Nothing can accomplish Iraq war until you hold them responsible.

a president who will force the Iraq government to take control of their country. we gave them their freedom now they need to take control and deal with the people who do not them to be free to include Iran.

Redefine victory, declare the new goals achieved, turn Bush/Cheney/ and Rrumsfeld over to alqueda for interegation about their part in international war crimes.

Unless someone finds the weapons of mass destruction (WMD) Bush and his neo posse will forever be tagged with killing more Americans (4064 to date) then did the terrorist attacks did on 9-11.

We've already accomplished what we set out to do. Got rid of Sadam Hussein!

Mission Accomplished! Now lets get out while the getting is still possible.

Bush always said he wasn’t into nation building. So I guess we're done.

Bring the troops home.

Honestly, I think the only way of ending this war is to just blow up the whole country and start from scratch because they are NEVER going to stop fighting amongst themselves!! This has all turned into Mission Impossible!!

Jack,

Today is the fifth anniversary of the end of the War in Iraq. It is the Occupation of Iraq that has failed. The only way this Occupation ends is when the Bush Administration and its cronies; that includes Senator McCain, are all removed from positions of power. The reason why this Occupation hasn't ended is because W has insisted on keeping his oil company friends happy and his Halaburton relationship alive. W might be stupid, but he knows that in January 2009 he will need a new job.

Declare "WE WON" and go home.!

Sadam is dead, there were no WMD's, the Iraqis have held elections and chosen their representatives. Now it's time for us to leave and let the Iraqis govern themselves.

It's difficult to win a mission that hasn't been defined, Jack. Any solution to Iraq's problems must include poltical diplomacy and the current administration is without a diplomat.

Jack,
Mission acomplished. For your information.

No more Saddam Hussein

No more threats of WMD

No more threats of killings of the Kurds

No more threats of killings of the Shiites

and what is more a free and pro-US ally in the Middle East. Now that is something we sure need.

Seems like certain people sure have a short memory span.
Phil

Can are mission be accomplished, what mission are you talking about Jack?

WMD's? overthrowing a dictator? Ending Iranian influence?

If the mission is to stay there, how can we accomplish that anytime soon?

If the mission is to use Iraq as a starting ground for future wars, no the mission is not accomplished?

If the mission is no bid contracts and milking the oil from the ground, no the mission is not accomplished yet?

What is the mission in Iraq? If it is to install a western style democracy that will never happen. If it is to bring stability to the country or the region, that will never happen. If it is to get the Iraqi oil for Shell and Exxon, that might happen but our troops will still have to stay to protect the oil. I personally cannot conceive of any scenario which could be called mission accomplished.

What was the "real mission"? George Bush's mission was to first dupe Congress into allowing him to continue where his father had failed (capture Saddam) and to secure Iraq's oil reserves under the guise of spreading "freedom and democracy". What is the real "US mission" in Iraq? That's the $64,000 question.

Jack,

The only way we could accomplish our mission in Iraq is;

Shouldn't have gone there in the first place.

Now we need to get out.

These people have been in conflict with each other and christians for 1600 years, and there still is no Democratic state and women still don't have any rights. Are we blind or dumb?

It will be this way until the end of time.

No comment necessary...

Bush earns highest disapproval rating of all time

We will never accomplish anything in Iraq, becuase there was nothing to accomplish there in the first place. The only reason we are there is because the current administration bases it foreign policy on the book of revelation, and they want to dominate the middle east so that they can protect Israel and see if Jesus will comeback. So as long as we go to war in the hopes of creating the second coming of christ we will not accomplish much.

It is difficult to image since there was obviously no plan other than to get rid of Saddam. After that was done all in the White House stood around looking at each other, shrugging their collective shoulders, and said "What's next?" as they looked a clueless George. It's been 5 years since "Mission Accomplished" was posted on the aircraft carrier and what was accomplished cannot possibly be explained.

We have to get our troops out.

My respect to every soldier that I know and have not met that has and will serve but If you were a general and magically told that you need to take over a country of 25 million from an evil dictator and you had to sacrifice what amounts to less than an aircraft carrier and it’s crew you would be hard pressed not to do it. It is a very hard fight with lives and casualties and a great amount of up front money. But this will soon stabilize, they will be secure and developing a new country, they will be soon be paying their own way, and they will then be paying us back for our expenses and we will have safe and committed allies in the very center of the Middle East for years to come with all the security to our own country that comes with that.

Bringing our troops out will be a win-win.

How about a simple admission, like,...'it was a mistake, to go in in the first place'. and hand the keys back to the Iraq people to figure it out for themselves!

There's a movie that has a part in it that bush & cheney baby should
watch, it's called the Termitator, and the part is where Arnold
describes the terminators, he says They will not stop, EVER!
well that describes our enemy to a tee. Unless you kill every
last terrorist along with every person that has ever heard and
agrees with the extremist argument, the problem will persist.
Unless you create a market for sand, there will always be a
disenfranchised portion of the population that hates us because
of what we have and the way we live. You can't accomplish a mission
when you haven't a clue what the mission is!

We have two choices. Cut our losses and leave ala Vietnam, or end it the way we ended WWII. Which sounds better to you? I bet if you asked the Japanese, they would opt for choice "A".

As an army veteran who served in Baghdad in 2004 we already won! the mission was always to get rid of saddam and secure WMD's. Well Saddam is dead and there are no WMD's. "Mission Accomplished"

Lets cut the Air force loose. Bomb Sadr, Bomb any militias we dont like AND COME HOME. Let Iraq sort out its own problems.

Jack,
Simple a complete removal from the area of all troops.
Selling all of the parties all of the weapons they want.
The last man with his feet on the ground leaves a sign.

WE WILL NEVER SEND TROOPS BACK TO FIGHT IN THE MIDDLE EAST. WE WILL SEND ENOUGH FIRE POWER THAT WILL LEAVE THE MIDDLE EAST LIKE TWO ASIAN CITIES. NOTHING WILL LIVE IN THE MIDDLE EAST AGAIN.

I am tired of playing war. It must end even if it requires the most extreme measures.

I first have to ask what is the mission in Iraq. From everything I have heard since the start of the war was to topple Sadam. Since that has been accomplished why are we still there?

As long as the Government sends people around with bags of money to pay the insurgents not to fight , and then they turn around and buy weapons to kill our guys. The only way is to pullout now to save as many troops as possible.

Jack after over 4,000 US troops have been killed, I think this war will never be over unless the US drops a few big bombs, enough to possibly level a whole city, maybe that will get their attention and give them some incentive to move in the right direction! Enough playing hide and seek already.
Then to finally say the mission is accomplished, the US should announce that since Iraq has 70 billion in the bank now, the US will take all or even half the oil produced in that country for an undetermined amount of time
The Saudis won't like it but oh well, it's time to bring the price down!

Accomplish the mission as stated to the American public, impossible. To accomplish the real mission which was to gain American corporate control of all the Iraq oil, unlikely. To give people around the planet more compelling reasons to hate America, a resounding success.

We haven't finished Korea!

In fact; WWII was the last VICTORY for the U.S.!

Jack,

How long will it take to win World War III?

Simply, a Democrat President

I do not know about the Iraq Mission being accomplished but we seem to be poised for another Middle Eastern War in Iran if you listen to what the Current President, " Bomb bomb Iran McCain", or trigger happy "Obliterate Iran Clinton" talk about. I am afraid by the time my 8 year old is 18 he will be drafted to fight one of these wars.

Jack,

We should have never entered this. And while it would be great to leave today most likely Iran and the Saudi Arabia will end up in a war over the religous differences they already have which we just think we are paying a high price for oil now.

Bottom line we need to take that chance. Bush stepped right in to Bin Laden's trap. Bring those soldiers home put them along our boarders and in our airports to protect our people and spend some of that borrowed money on new fuels and keeping illegal immigrants out.

The internal strife between Sunnis and Shiites have been raging for centuries, and will continue to rage. The Us military presence in Iraq accomplishes two things: (1) it brings a new player to the area – Al Quaeda; and (2) it prolongs the need for Iraq to come to grips with its own internal problems. Time to vacate Iraq - we will not achieve anything lasting or meaningful by staying

The mission was to find WMD's. Since there are no WMD's the mission can not be accomplished. End of story.

Jack...what IS the mission in Iraq? If it was to decieve the American people and destroy the lives of tens of thousands of Iraqi's for the sake of big oil, big business and military contractors then it is, sadly, "mission accomplished".

We would like to finish our mission. But the left-wing media and those that support them make it difficult. Please support your country and the troops over here, and quit undermining our efforts. What we try to do is a noble thing, and will go down in history as a turning point in the war on terrorism. Every time you turn on the President, you turn on us. I know many on the left hate the military, but we fight for your rights every day, and die for your freedom.

Jack, doesn't that depend entirely on what the mission was in the first place? I think I've heard at least half a dozen iterations, and I still can't figure out why we went in. But the President seems rather pleased with himself and our "progress" to date, so I'm sure he's gotten whatever he wanted out of it.

How about the news actually reporting that we are at war?? 52 soldiers dead last month, and it is not reported anywhere on TV news.

it can't be done unless we fight a real war not the half ass one we are fighting now. our troops are in harms way every day but they can't fight the war like it should be done–this is another viet nam and we are losing our boys and maming boys when they could be better protected if we ran a real military WAR. better yet get the hell out and bring our troops home.
ellen
bella vista

What's the matter with you, Jack??? Can't you read?
The sign behind the President clearly said we already accomplished our mission. Sheesh, some people!

Iraq won't be liberated until American troops leave.

Did anyone say yes other than "GRIFF"? Anyone?

NO

What will it take to accomplish the U.S. mission in Iraq?

First there needs to be a clear mission. WMD's none found. Nuclear program. Didn't exist. Connection to 9/11 attack – none.

Oh, wait a minute! Line the pockets of Dick Cheney's pals. 100% successful.

I thought our goal going in was to take down Saddam and be greeted by the general population as liberators. We finished the first part of that when they hung Saddam but the liberator part was a pipe dream. Get the hell out of there ASAP. The mission will be accomplished when Bush/Chenny are HISORY.

Is the mission Bush's fantasy ? If yes, we have already won.

We're trying to stack BBs in Iraq. The U.S. installed "government" is a total flop and five years into this, the people there trust the local militia leaders more than they ever trusted us ... and they're right.

The US went in with far too many troops, I do not remember he general's name who said we needed 400,000 or more troops to invade Iraq. We went in with around 125,000. He appears to have been correct.

I do not see how we can win this war, now or in the future. This is a 'new type of war' that the US has never had to fight. Perhaps no other country has either. Brute force will not win this war.

Find a way out and turn this whole thing over to the Iraq's government.

Bring our troops home ASAP. Take the money we are spending on Iraq and spend that money 'here' in the US where it is so badly needed. For example, developing new sources of 'clean energy'.

Harry
Aspen, Colorado

There are two big factors for continued violence in Iraq: the current occupation and the feeling of resentment by Iraqis and Muslims towards the US for their ongoing interference in the East.

If Obama steadily draws down troops in Iraq and diminishes US troop presence in places like Saudi Arabia and Guantanamo he will be able to diminish Al Qaeda’s recruiting and return to a more conservative foreign policy.

This war will only be won with the hearts and minds of the people – there is no military solution.

Can we start with a clear mission statement and then, as a unified country, do whatever it takes to accomplish it? Nixon had the right idea in Viet Nam when he sought "Peace, With Honor." Actually, all he really did was say, "We won" and then we left. That works for me.

You cannot take a country where religion is the political norm, and convert them to a democratic society. It simply will not work.

Iraq was doomed to failure, from the beginning, and nothing has changed.

Nor will the experience be any different, in any other Islamic country.

Why do you call it 'out mission in Iraq'? This is solely Bush's little neoconservative project. After January 2009 he should not be left off the hook: he should be forcibly sent to Iraq to the US Embassy there as US ambassador or some other diplomatic function (at least).

Bush is trying to save face. His legacy is already a joke. Just leave. He has no legacy, only in National Lampoons comics. This Iraq war has not worked, will not work.

Oil prices are ridiculous. The Iraq war has not helped and only hurt on that front. The Middle East is more than Iraq. Too bad this administration can't see past their own, non-reading, trying to save face ways.

The economy is in shambles but according to Bush, it's in a "slow down." What exactly does a "slow down" mean in business terms? What does a "slow down" mean to the people that are losing their houses on a daily basis?

It's been an eight year nightmare.

Is it November yet?

I have never understood the logic in Iraq's invasion. I never have, don't now and never will support this "war"

The "mission accomplished" banner was only one of many tell tale signs that the Bush Administration had no clue what they were doing by going into Iraq in the first place.

Since they keep moving the goal posts, I would say no. On the other hand if our true mission is to incite the Islamic world, then we've already accomplished this ten-fold.

John C

Hackensack, NJ

Jack,
WHAT IS THE MISSION? If we can just solidly answer that question maybe we can. The problem is, the answer to the question seems to change weekly.

I'd put more faith in a letter to Santa Claus than to buy stock in all the wishful thinking we've heard from Bush and McCain.

This just goes to show you that GW and his administration
are pretty slow. (not to smart) It only took them five years
to come up with an excuse for the Mission Accomplished sign.
The real "Mission Accomplished" will happen in January 2009
when George and Dick walk away from the White house for the
last time. Then the USA can get back to being the Great Nation it was
before Bush 2.

You don't "win" a war against terrorists. They don't have a base. They don't have a sole leader. They don't have a country. The DO have endless numbers though.

Coming from a major Republican state, (Utah), if I hear one more mindless person say "We must stay the course. We must fight terror there or terror will come to us! We must not dishonor those who have fallen!" And yes, I tend to send with Republicans and I am Mormon but this is just insane.

Need I go on? "If we leave now, it will become a base for terror!" What do you think it is right now!? Club Med?

You don't win an undefined war.

It can only be accomplished if the political leadership defines what our mission is and how to measure "accomplished". No one in the current administration has done that, so I would have to say no.

It is incredible to me that there are still people claiming links to WMD, al-Qiada and support for the Kurds. They must live an alternate reality.

The "Commander-in-Chief" should be sent to the "Green Zone" and not allowed to come home until the mission is accomplished.......and our TROOPS come home.

We just gave Iran more oil and more country. As soon as we leave, it will be Iran's land.

Ideologies, government forms, egos, etc. be damed. How can anyone ask a young man/woman to die for a cause that cannot be defined? At least, I do not understand the cause and I am fairly smart.

Bush's Big Oil buddies are getting richer and richer.

Cheney's war profiteer buddied are getting richer and richer.

The military provides an employment alternative for the poor, uneducated and (now) convicted fellons.

From a neocon perspective it is Mission Accomplished!

Iraq is a country in the 10/40 window. It was an Islamic state that prohibited any devotion other than Muslim faith. The people are beginning to be liberated, able to worship as pleased–just as in America. Now that Iraq has turning into a large missionary field, I see the President's goals being accomplished. Remember, this is about poking a hole in the 10/40 window...all else is irrelevant.

George W. Bush's only thoughts all those years and bodies ago was to get cheap oil for his friends and himself and to get work for Haliburton. George is in it strictly for the payoff, both under and over the table. If anyone thinks otherwise they are just proving how gullible NORTH AMERICANS are. I add Canada to the list as we were sucked into the bull too. God help us all!.

yeah, jus like Vietnam was...

Mission WIL BE accomblished – The world is a lot safer because of Bush – He is a knucklehead sometimes – But I would hate to see what GORE would have done after 9-11

What a stupid question. There IS no goal. Therefore, there can be no victory.

Well let"s see:
Weapon of mass destruction: None found- mission accomplished
Removal of a brutal dictator: Hanged- mission accomplished
Establishment of a democracy: hm they voted in a government didn't they so mission accomplished.
Peace in Iraq- Was this ever the reason to go into Iraq? It will NEVER happen. This is a country of tribes that will always battle each other.

Our history and track record in the Mid East is atrocious.

We supported and funded the Shah of iran - where do we stand now with Iran?

We supported, funded and gave Saddam Hussein weapons to fight against Iran. How did that work out with Hussein?

We trained, funded, and gave weapons to Osama Bin Laden to fight the Russians in Afghanistan – that launched Bin Laden's fame as a freedon fighter. How are doing with Osama today?

We gave Saudi Arabia billions in arms and bases and we had numerous bases in that country. When the Royal Family grew fearful of the Bin Laden that we had created, the saudis threw us out of their country. Today the US has NO troops and NO bases in Saudi Arabia.

We give Israel hundreds of millions of military AID every year. When was the last time you saw the Israel military come support the US. In Kuwait? NO In Iraq? No NEVER

The Us will never learn that you cannot make friends simply by giving them mney, weapons, and training.

TIME TO LEAVE THE MID EAST

In a war there should be enemies. Who are the enemies in the Iraq war now? Who are the militants? Did these militants exist before the war was started? 900 civilians and militants being killed in a matter of a month, and killing and displacement of numerous people for more than five years have caused frustration, anger and desperation among the Iraqi people themselves.

We have to redefine the mission. We have to ponder over the meaning of winning the Iraq war. We have to find a balance among pride in winning, humanity in USA and Iraq as a whole, and raising the American image in the world. Then the question of accomplishment of the mission comes.

The people of this country need to face one simple fact. We loose more americans to Hand Guns, Auto Accidents, Drug and Alcohol abuse in any given year, then we have ever lost to Terrorists in this country.
We have let a flood of patriotism sweep us into a world of delusional national pride. I for one am ashamed.
As for me, I now follow a new mantra: No More Fear

There was never any mission to accomplish.

This administration has been skilled at making it sound as though anyone against the war is also against our troops. How untrue. We value each and every soldier and their family members, and that's why we should not have forced them into such an awful mess. Wouldn't we rather have them home, contributing to society here and being ready for legitimate causes and threats to peace? Wouldn't we want them here with their families, holding their son, seeing their daughter grow up, loving their spouse? And whatever happened to the "coalition?" There never was such a thing. What percent of deaths in the war have been Americans, compared to the coalition? What part of the obscene expenditures have been by the Americans, compared to the coalition? "Iraqi Coalition" is the biggest oxymoron ever. Enough is enough.

Jack

The problem is no one really knows what the defined mission was and or is.

Well Jack, From what I can tell, we have accomplished every mission that we have set for ourselves:
We have removed Sadam Hussein.
We have eliminated his capacity to produce weapons of mass destruction.
We have stayed on while the Iraqi people conducted free and open elections.
When things began to fall apart, we sent in more troops and restored a semblance of order.
The question should not be if we can accomplish our mission, the question should be : How many times will the mission change, what is the mission now, and how will we know we have accomplished it!

The mission was never ours to accomplish in the first place; it was the Iraqis. If they wanted Saddam gone, they would have removed him on their own. If they wanted the terrorists gone, they would have removed them on their own. The Iraqi people are not only content to live under tyranny, they seem to prefer it.

To impeach Bush

Is it even supposed to "be accomplished" at this point? I though the whole point of the invasion was to create permanent bases for the US in the Middle East as well as secure long term funding for the Military Industrial Complex.

John from Iraq, just because people disagree with President Bush, doesn't take ANYTHING away from your courage and honor in serving your country. If you can honestly fight for an unknown goal, more power to you.

Do you honestly think a year, two years, maybe 10 years you can announce on the news "USA leaving Iraq. Country stabilized. Terrorist threat eliminated." ?

I am not dogging what you do or you position, we all have to face the facts though and admit that we have no clear goal in Iraq. There is no clear mission or "end game".

The mission cannot be accomplished. The best we can hope for is a graceful exit.

I second Joyce on the sentiment of "...do we even KNOW what the mission is...?". If the mission is to gobble up the oil fields/revenues we can probably get the job done, but we'll be in it for 100 years + as McCain indicates. So, every one of us, in our gas-guzzling vehicles ought to consider if the lives of our soldiers or worth that; or deo we finally get serious about conservation and looking for alternative fuel sources with or without the oile companies. Good Luck to us all!!

That's the easiest question you have ever asked, Jack. The answer is HELL NO! Nothing can ever be accomplished in a region of the world that thrives on religious hate. Those who don't hate have to be protected 24/7 by the Armed Forces of the U.S. The mideast is the cause of most of the world's problems. I say NUKE the whole damn place while we still can before it ignites world war three.

The mission has been accomplished. It got President Bush a second term, It allowed his administration to pass laws that consolidated power in the executive branch, and it enriched all of the Republican backers. What more could you want?

I can't believe you think americans know anything that is authentic. Let's concentrate on honesty at home and countering greed and just plain old apathy before throwing insults at Bush.

Jack,

We're so far in now, I'm not sure we can get out. Unlike what the Bush administration seems to think, the solution in Iraq is not military.
We will never win a military engagement against well-imbedded insurgents (our own history with the British should have taught us that). The solution is social and economic. The Iraqi government needs to stand up to their responsibilities to rebuild their country, get lawlessness under control, and re-establish social services. Until that happens, this situation will drag on and on and on. We need to work with them to plan the work, and then work the plan.

As so many before me said, there is no defined mission in Iraq, so there is no way to accomplish it and no way to measure whether we are going to accomplish it. My solution – why not just call it "mission accomplished" and go home?

It cannot be accomplished, because the mission has not been specified. I believe it was always about long military presence and exapnsion in the Middle East. We've been lied about this war from the very beginning. "Mission Accomplished" is the joke of a centrury. Greetings from Poland.

umm mission what would that be? its like hanging a carrot in front of a donkey , it finally gets close and has it yanked away again, the question you should ask is what the goal will be next week? our troops do their job, and they are repayed but extended tours and repeated deployments. when will enough be enough?

Duh!! We already have. The problem is Bush and Cheney haven't realized their own personal mission yet - money, oil, money, oil .... their pockets are not full enough yet even though they have made a lot of money on this war.

No.

BUSH is the biggest mistake the american voter EVER made in the history of the United State. We had 8 years of a cowboy. We don't want an other 4 years of one. McCann is going to give us 4 more years of war and more of our men and woman dead and for what OIL. Mc Cann may start up the draft.

The consensus of these comments is astounding. If these comments are representative of the country, it's incredible Bush has somehow managed to stay in office. I argued in 2002 that this war was a bad decision. Sadly nothing has changed.

Jack, a non defined mission can never be accomplished.

Reading the posts here Jack, I wonder where were all these anti-war folks during the last two elections?
Especially the last election. They KNEW they were voteing for 4 more years of war and civil rights loss by re-electing GW.

Having a mission implies having a good reason to be in Iraq which we don't have.

Jack, after 9/11 the American public was baying for blood. We wanted someone to fight, someone to kill, no matter how bogus the evidence was. Hussein is dead now but American soldiers and the Iraqi people are still paying the price. We're a crutch to the Iraqis and if they are ever going to walk on their own that crutch needs to be removed.
For the sake of both our countries we need to get out.

Jack,
The mission was accomplished long ago, Bush won a second term, Chaney enhanced his coffers and Hillary got to play a hawk. Those who perished on the altar of these politicians were and always will be considered expendable.

I think we have done it all Jack. Now that we have given them tons of weapons and training the Iraqi military and police are the largest forces in Iraq. I think that if we pulled out today they would go out and string up the remaining Al Queda in a week. Then they would finish the job on Al Sadr and voila, the job is done. Why fight and die when the US is there to do it for them? Up the ante, let them know there are no more US troops down the street. Our troop presence is Iraq is the biggest impediment to a real "Mission Accomplished"

Installing a brutal dictator to rein in the various ethnic an religious groups is the only way to keep the peace in Iraq. Oh right, we kind of got rid of that didn't we. Then the answer is *nothing*. There is nothing that can be done to bring peace and true freedom to that country now. We screwed the pooch.

Oh, this one is easy... elect a Democrat for President that will bring it to a halt. Dont get me wrong, there is a price for that too.

First off – STOP calling it a war. It's not. It's a failed occupation. Once we admit that, we can turn the occupation around and get something positive going. It will mean VERY STRICT laws governing the way Iraqies live, but then we can flush out the rebellious factions and set the country to a better course.

The other alternative is to section off the part of Iraq that has the oil, call it an American territory and leave the rest to rot. After the desertion of the 1000+ it's clear that "those people" don't deserve what we've handed them.

One word - Obama.

It will take us leaving Iraq for the mission to be accomplished. This has been the biggest blunder in the history of our country. In fact, with the rise of the Taliban in Afghanistan, we better leave Iraq somewhat soon so we have enough capable troops to assist in that war as well. Bush and his cronies really screwed this up and we will be left to pay for it. I hope he has the "steelly resolve" to meet the parents, spouses, and children of our soldiers killed in Iraq to explain to them how their sacrifice made us safer.

Hasn't the Mission has been accomplished already? Saddam Won, Ossama Won, Al Qaeda Won – The Iraqi People are Prisoners, Our Soldiers are Prisoners and The American People are now also prisoners of this War. Is that what you meant? Sorry For Bad Englis!!

Jack ,
What exactly is our mission in Iraq? This president and vice president keep changing the goals. The best way, i'am sure almost all American citizens would agree is to get this damn fool of a president and vice president out of office. And please don't let them touch anything important until these idiots are gone.
Carl in Illinois

The mission was to grab and consolidate power away from the legislative branch into the executive branch irregardless of the name of the political party. This mission has been accomplished.

We don't have the resources or the muster to win this war!! These same people have been fighting for almost 2,000 years and they don't want our way of life, our government or anything else we have to offer unless it is money for the few highest officials in their government which they are trying to fashion after ours on who can steal the most money for their own purposes.

Jack, it will take the entire US economy to accomplish the US mission in Iraq, that's what we are observing today in our economy.

We need to secure the borders of Iraq to stop the constant new insurgency from the outside. Then we need to flush out all of the insurgents that are there, and defeat them.
It's very sad, because we can't afford to be there, and we can't afford not to be there.

From South Bend, Indiana

Is this really the time to take on such serious issue, Jack? Obama's pastor is still out there.
David, Vancouver, Canada

What was the mission again?

Josh
Chelsea, MI

Iraq only works as a brutal dictatorship. It was a political impossibility when it was created by the Brits in 1921.

When we finally bail, blood will flow in rivers, but it won't ours. The slaughter will disappear from TV since no one will dare stay to film it. As Iraq descends into chaos, Iran, Turkey , Saudi Arabia and Syria will move in and carve it up.

Let them. Whoever ends up in control of Iraq can't eat oil. They'll sell, we'll buy.

Life will go on.

Staying or leaving Iraq has become such a popular topic since the presidential debate has started, it has pitted our presence in the country as either a republican matter or democrat matter and whose withdrawl ideas are best. However, I don't feel this is a political matter anymore, we can't leave Iraq until it is a stable country. The world is in such a volatile state right now, that we as a country can't afford to diminish our stature as a super power anymore than we have. Also, there are 4,064(currently) souls that sacrificed their lives in defense of this nation, if we leave Iraq as is, these men and women will have died in vein. We entered Afghanistan to root out terrorists, we entered Iraq to oust Saddam. In Iraq, we have created a haven for terrorists, it seems to me that leaving Iraq now would be counter-productive to our nations goals against terrorism. Therefore, in order to be victorious, I feel we should escalate the war by deploying an excessive amount of troops. I am a soldier, and I'll go.

Of course our Mission can be accomplished!!!!

Which one?

Can we ever end this interventionist politics? Whenever, one nation
believes it has superiority of politics, might and mind there is trouble.
The Soviet Union learned the hard way. Where is the Iraqui war
to help pay for the cost of this absurd military action? I thought
we learned our lesson in Vietnam. Now we will save the world
from the evil boogiemen the 'terrorists', they are everywhere.
If we could just use our resources on our country, we would
be might again.

Do you want an affidavit?

Their mission was accomplished.

No, I dont think so. One, because we went into Iraq for the wrong reason.

What Iraq War? There is no Iraq War. There are a lot of US Soldiers in Iraq being underpaid security personel for the Iraqi government. At most, there is a civil war in Iraq where the US soldiers stand between Shi'ites and Sunni's and they hate the US more than they hate each other. Solution seems simple doesn't it?

Oh, Jack, we've already accomplished our mission. Didn't you read the banner? Wait, our mission was to give Al Qaeda weapons, let bin Laden run free, and destroy the lives of thousands upon thousands of citzens with our smart bombs, right? We don't need 100 years.

Impossible Jack, because nobody knows exactly what the mission is, it changes from week to week, day to day and body to body!

First off, what is our mission in Iraq? And if it is to democratize the Iraqi people and start up a democratic nucleus out there! well good luck on that... If so, this mission is going to take us the same amount of time it took the Western world to inquire democracy and abide by it, ignore its faults and move on. Not to mention the hundreds of millions of people who died throughout history in the name of Democracy... Who is he trying to fool!!?

Time. Like every other war, the wave of history will wash the USA invasion of Iraq into the so easily forgettable past.

Mission Accomplished: Huge sums of money were transferred into private hands and now, with high gas prices, the oil industry can revive their pitch to open up restricted domestic oil production areas.

All things returning to "normal", this is until the world oil supply really does dry up and the USA then gets serious about exercising imperial powers. Then off we go again, with nary a whisper of past events.

The day the Unites States succeed in IRAQ we will see gas prices will fall significantly(NOT), pigs will fly(NOT), we will go to the moon for the FIRST time(YEAH RIGHT!), live in racial harmony(NEVER WILL HAPPEN), no more Jihad(THIS IS A GOOD ONE), President Bush and V.P. Cheney will admit that going to war was a MISTAKE(HMMMM!). And Hell freezes over a couple of times(Satan will not let that HAPPEN). Since none of these instances WILL EVER HAPPEN we will never succeed in Iraq!

Hi, Jack. All missions have specific time-frames to ensure that there will be a certain time when we can assess whether or not it was a success or failure. A "mission" with no such specification can in theory go on indefinitely. In that case, not only can such a "mission" not be completed, it would also never end.

You can't accomplish a mission based on lies.

A democratic president.

The different relious factions in this part of the world have been at odds with each other for much longer than the existance of the US of A. As much as they don't like each other they like to be invaded by onother country even less. There is no way that the presence of occuping external forces can ever help Iraqi people achieve peace. We need to let this sovereign country rule and resolve their internal issues by them selves. What was the mission again?????

No. How can you accomplish a mission that has no stated purpose (or at least the SAME, consistent stated purpose from day to day)

Jack, our troops are set up for failure in Iraq. They have an unattainable goal and are lacking the equipment needed. We cannot force the Iraqi people to stand up and fight for a country of their own. If they want to let it be taken over, and kill each other, let them. It is not our responsibility to take care of everyone else.

What exactly was the "mission" in the first place ????

What we need to do is define the U.S. mission in Iraq.

The mission was accomplished when the Shrub said it was. We have been in an occupation since that time. You can't win an occupation. When you clear the hell out and leave those people to govern their own country, that is when the progress will start.

Stoopid question, firstly, define the mission.

What in the world IS our mission?

Cheryl Kroemer
Syracuse, IN

I'd love to, Jack, but I'm still waiting, five years later, to find out exactly WHAT the mission actually is.

What's the mission? It's changed so much how do we know what the mission is? It's impossible to measure an accomplishment if you don't know what the mission is. What's sadder is that we are losing lives for something that's uncertain.

Sandra
Tyler, TX

We can only accomplish the objective in Iraq by pulling out completely and as quickly as possible.
Mike Flannigan

What will it take? Total troops withdrawal.

What will it take to accomplish the US mission in Iraq? Let's see...food and energy costs beyond the reach of most Americans, high unemployment, a dollar worth nothing...nothing short of the complete economic collapse of this country within a year or two. Hmmm, sounds like any terrorists have already gotten us to accomplish THEIR mission for them.

Only way to get out of this quagmire and save American lives and tax payer money is to get Iran and Syria seriously involved in peace talks.

Minneapolis, Minnesota
Jack,
only with a new administration led by President Barack Obama.

The answer is so simple that the current administration cannot see it. Mr. Obama see's it. Change the mission.

It will take a hundred years.

Samir,
Salt Lake City

someone with a brain and can accept criticism when you make the wrong choice!

how about a good listener not a dictator oops i meant decider!

What exactly is our mission there? Maybe when we figure out what the mission is, we can accomplish it.

Nothing can be done to accomplish the mission in Iraq. The Arabs have been fighting for thousands of years. Even if we stayed 100 years they would overthrow any new government whenever we left. We might as well get out of there and sve our own.

Can America's mission in Iraq be accomplished?
That would largely depend on what your definition of "accomplished" is.
As we have seen, and continue to see, that barometer has more twists, turns, dips, and slides than ANY roller coaster ride known to man.
Pardon my sarcasm.
We hear so many different takes on the progress, or lack of, that we are making in Iraq, that to assume any accomplishment can be made, is an accomplishment in and of itself.

Darrell in Dallas, TX

So we get out, then what? Pretend the disaster that will unfold over thier does not exist? I'm all in agreement for getting out but not untill
we have some degree of confidence that were not leaving a total mess behind.

Chris Tollette

Well, Jack considering that Iraq is running a 70 Billion dollar surplus in oil revenue, our military goals will be accomplished once Iraq is forced to pay for its own reconstruction. Meanwhile I will continue to pay for their needs through taxes, I will also supply them with cash as I pay $5.00 at the pump for regular. Thanks Jack.

Jack:

The U.S. mission in Iraq might be accomplished with about 5000 more dead Americans, some 30,000 more dead Iraqis, a good trillion dollars or so and ten years of blood, sweat and tears-here at home.

-Charles, Milford, Ohio

It will take much better leadership to be able to bring it to an end. What was billed as a liberation has turned into an occupation and a propping up of the Iraq government. We have seen more Americans killed by terrorists (4000+) than were killed in the 911 attacks. The big lie is that the war has somehow made us safer.

Jack,
v.p. Cheney has already accomplished His mission. In March of last year the Iraqi parliament passed an oil bill which allows for ownership by foreign nations. Iraq's oil had been nationalized since 1975.
Margie, Santa Barbara

This question cannot be answered. We do not know what is exactly the mission.

The invasion of Iraq has been a huge success for Mr. Bush and his friends. We now know they invaded Iraq so they could empty the National Treasury and give all the money to their friends via government contracts. Five trillion dollars later, some citizens are starting to wake up and realize that what the White House Administration has done is a war crime. I think the people responsible for the killings in Iraq should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of International Law. The only way to turn this situation into a positive is to treat it as any other murder-arrests and prosecutions.

Dear Jack, the only way that this mission can be accomplished is by getting rid of 2 things. One, President Bush. Two, the war in Iraq. You can't have the latter without the former!

The US mission in Iraq has already been accomplished. It's right there on the banner, Jack. Did you not hear the president's words? What you - or the president himself for that matter - may not have heard is what that mission was. The mission was to create a perpetual war that cannot ever be won. Kudos to Donald Rumsfeld for helping make that mission a reality!

Remember the endless and still unresolved debate on the definition of "winning' in Iraq.Our president lost patience with the constant unresolved deadlines of the U,N, and replaced them with the same.With no definitions or true parameters set,our 'mission' will never end.

A big dream.

Jack,
The "mission" was mum from the get, and everyone thought it was to get Hussein. Then the "mission" became freedom And I ask from what? They never asked anyone to intervene on their behalf for freedom – am I wrong? So now we are back to "mum". There can never be a "mission accomplished" because there never was a mission to begin with other the the fat lining of the Bush's and Chaney's pockets, not to mention the billion spent on the Iraqui people, all the while, the American people, can't are loosing their homes, can't pay for food or gas, and they pray not to lose their jobs.
Our "MISSION" as Americans should be now to end the war, get rid of Bush and his Posse and re start our sagging economy for the wellbeing of the tax payers, like myself, who will like my tax dollars to be invested in my country and my people. Nothing else. Charity is my God given right to practice, and I do so at my will, not by the government at their will.

Vote for John McCain and spend the next 100 years fighting and by 2108 everyone will be killed and there will be no one left to fight.

No end in sight. We will be fighting if it takes more than a 110 years. Answer in two words, Get Out. Majority of americans would agree with me.

I truly dont want to wish my life away but I can't wait until next January when we can be free from this unbelievably immoral man who cares nothing about the welfare of this great country. I ache for the less fortunate people in the U.S. who need so much and all that comes out of his mouth is "Iraq, Iraq...Iraq". We get a few hundred dollars for stimulus checks and Gates says OK, we won't spend 140,000,000 dollars for police stations in Iraq because they have made 70 to 80 Billion dollars in oil revenues. I hope Bush doesnt even show up for next years inaugaration but slinks back home to Texas never to be heard from again. Somebody please get elected and help us.

I thought the "mission" was to rid Iraq of weapons of mass destruction and Saddam. Since there were no WMD's and we have Saddam, what more is there to accomplish? What's the score between Saddam and Bush on wrongful deaths? 4,000 plus Americans soldiers dead and how many thousands of sodiers of other nations and innocent Iraqi's? Perhaps the US mission should end with the impeachment of Bush.

There never was a Mission Accomplish by design! The Mission in Iraq could of been achieved if Bush, Cheney and this entire administration chose to secure the 'peace' in Iraq before securing all those oil spigots. Bush, Cheney and this entire regime of liars could have pulled it off if they secured 'peace' first. That didn't happen! Iraq was a 'complete failure' by design. Failure to secure the peace has allowed US troops unfeathered access in Iraq. Hence, the 20 permanent bases still under construction and the country club called the GREEN ZONE! There was NO EXIT plan by design! The Permanent Occupation of the Middle East is the Ultimate Goal so in one sense, YES, Mission Accomplished for Bush, Cheney and this entire regime of liars for war and control.

The Middle East religious wars have rage for hundreds of years. How can anyone think that George Bush (or anyone else) can bring peace to that area?

If Bush's mission was to enrich oil companies, government contractors, cronies and family, then I would say he has accomplished his mission. Otherwise, I don't think we'll ever accomplish anything in Iraq much less "peace in the Middle East".

No. Plain and simple.

As an Iraqi American who's been against this "war" since it's inception I can tell you that it is hopeless to expect anything positive from all this. Read the Bible... the mid-east has been fighting for THOUSANDS of years, against each other and others....

When you are fighting people who don't care that they destroy everything they have in order to save face or make a point... We will never get what we want from them.

Not "our" mission.... Bush's mission WAS accomplished.... people just need to realize what they where really up to. Their mission was to destabilize, occupy, and control Iraq. We have created the military contractor utopia, with endless no bid contracts, and a President spending wild. The money isn't going no where.... while we go more into debt, many are becoming RICH from this war, and our tax dollars.

Jack, Will someone please tell me why we are exporting oil when we have an "oil" shortage here.

Mission Accomplished.

Mission Impossible.

Mission Abort!!!!!

First you need to define the mission.

Our mission in Iraq will be completed when HILLARY CLINTON takes over the Presidency. She has the wherewithall to accomplish what Mr Bush could not do. She is the best person for that job.

what is the mission?
The dictator is gone.
There is no Iraqi army or police – inspite of all the testimony by C. Rice etc in front of congress.
Oil is not flowing.
We are not liberators.
The whole area is unstable.
The green zone is really a bullseye zone.

The U.S. has accomplished depleting our treasury, our valued armed forces. It has pointed out the short comings of the VA system as well as the housing in some of the armed forces bases.

Yeah, I guess we accomplished something – the ruination of our country.

There is no way we can resolve this mess, even though we created it. It will only be resolved if we and others get out of the region, after which Iraq will dissolve into a civil/sectarian bloodbath. When the survivors finally grow tired of the senseless slaughter, they will form some sort of nation (perhaps several nations) and hopefully begin to live in peace with us and the rest of the world.

Get out of Iraq.......period. Let whomever takes over take over. Then talk about peace.

Accomplishing our mission would require an entire culture to stop doing something they've been doing for centuries–killing each other. Their religious beliefs,whether you agree with them or not,are so ingrained into their laws that there is no way to have a secular government such as ours. This administation was so arrogant as to believe that we could shove democracy down their throats without much pushback.

What?! I thought we were still looking for WMDs! Am I wrong? Oh, I am? Oops... Then I don't really know why we're in Iraq...

We should deploy all our troops to the oil fields near Basra. We should capture the oil fields and start shipping the oil to the USA. This will; solve our energy problems, pay the US taxpayers back for the Iraq war from the oil profits as promised, lower gas prices and we would have the strongest economy in the world.

Richard in Tampa, Fl

Jack I do not beleive so, if you look at what's been accomplished so far, good men and womens lifes lost and at risk, our economy in shambles, food and oil prices on the rise, if you can call that mission accomplished, then you can call yourself part of the Bush regime.

What is the mission? - this is a moving target, reducing expectations as the administration (both US and Iraqui) fail to meet one goal after another.

The only goal that makes sense is to bring our troops and equipment [don't want to leave it for Iran] out safely and learn an important lesson: the presidential election process is severely flawed, rather then the best and the brightest, we get the biggest BS artist.

You can't make a lie the truth. If you start it on a lie it will always be a lie. You can't lock the devil up. You need some moral authority before you start making treats to show how big and bad you are. I'm not against war, but it must be the very last option. Be careful how you open up Pandora's Box.

Dear Jack, we have to get rid of Bush and elect a Democrat. Then we will gain rank by making the world peaceful, wonderful, and fair from New York City to Istanbul Turkey.

The simple fact that we feel as though we have to accomplish some thing is arrogant and obsurd. First of all, we're considered "infidels", we have no respect for their religion, or way of life, and, the only way a civil war is settled , is between the factions involved. I guess paying them off with U.S. tax dollars is not working. Save our troops, bring them home. WE DON'T BELONG THERE!!!

Lawrence Delaware

If you fabricated the reasons for the "mission" and you have no specified goal to accomplish, how can you achieve "mission accomplished"?

We broke it– we own it– now we can't sell it. It's a total failure. The mission will never be accomplished.

Only sending this arrogant idiot and his clowns to jail.

First you need to know exactly what the mission is. Then you can decide whether it can be accomplished and what would qualify as accomplishment. What is the objective and is Iraq the right place to achieve it?

Jake, We can "win" when we as a nation (the people) are convinced that we MUST win this war. I don't think this will ever happen. The CNN poll today shows Bush is in the catagory of the other presidents who presided over "questionable wars"...Vietnam and Korea.
John, Indiana

Jack, I spent four years in the Army, and over three of those years was in the 101st Airborne Division. I am proud to have served with so many great Soldiers and would do it all over again. However my time in Iraq convinced me of two things, one that this president is completely clueless about the war, and secondly that withdrawing our brave Soldiers and Marines is the only solution. The Iraqis are tired of us being there, and our Soldiers are tired of endless deployments. We did our job, now bring us home!

As , to what it will take to end the war in Iraq, I believe it will take two things. These two things could solve two issues.First make Iraq the 51st state of the United States, and the second is get all the illegal imigrants together , make them U.S. citizens ,and ship them to Iraq.

Look at W's business record and you will see why this enterprise had no hope for success, from the beginning. Every business he captained ran aground, and now he has done the same to our ship of state. Plus, he's done all this damage without PAYING for it - our children and grandchildren will be paying for this until they are old enough to collect Social Securiy, which will then be only a fond memory for old geezers. To all those who pronounced what we needed was a businessman for a President...you should have said a SUCCESSFUL businessman. But he's got one superlative locked up - the WORST President, ever. Mission Accomplished, with no real competition.

Since Bush and Chaney wanted to be in Iraq so badly, we should air drop them in the oil rich city of Basra. I am sure they will be more than welcomed there.

We can't leave, and we don't have the manpower to stay. If were going to have any success in Iraq we need to declare a state of emergency in the United States and put every single man and women within age in uniform and send them over. We need a draft.

No, of coarse not Jack.
As long as we keep things business as usual in Iraq we are going to have exactly what the big Military Industrial Complex and media outlets of this nation want:
A perpetual war to keep there profit shares up along with our anxiety.
Please God help the American people make the right choice and elect a person that will pull us back from the brink. (OBAMA!)
Tom – Kansas

My answer to your question Jack is "GET OUT'.

Leave. Biden was the onlly one that had a plan that made sense. Nothing will get better until the powers that remain in iraq fight it out in their own civil war and the new nation rises from the ashes. they cant do that while they still have a common foe in the USA sitting in their midst. Draw down to the borders and move troops home or to freindly nations to prevent spill over and let the fight it out. then deal with the victor.

That is the only way to get out and that is what will eventually happen anyway. why not sooner rather than later.

Once a mission is well defined, I believe the United States military is capable of accomplishing the unthinkable; even at the risk of loss of life. What I find Ironic is that the administration is willing to risk the lives of our military, and not willing to risk its pride and policy; and exhaust all efforts diplomatically (talking to all related parties). What this indicates to me is that someone places more value in a policy that has no moral or intellectual basis; than the life of a service member. In summary, a little humility can go a long way.

whether the mission in Iraq is accomplished or not, it will cause many other missions in the future. Troops are still in Afghanistan and Iraq for accomplishing the mission and nobody knows when their missions can be accomplished. And in future, May be in Iran, there will be new missions and more deads, more unstable situation will going on.

The mission was accomplished. VP Cheney couldn't have said it better in response to the majority of Americans being against the war, "So?" Bush got what he wanted - to outdo his Dad. And, Cheney got his cronies what they wanted - billions of our tax dollars and counting. See? Mission Accomplished.

If Americans want their mission accomplished, they had better elect a Democrat, this time instead of McSame.

If my congress would impeach all that were involved and are still involved in that mess, the mission would be accomplished. They went over on a lie, and since Iraq will not sigh over their oil, Bush will not bring them home. That was the mission. Operation Iraqi Liberation. OIL.

It will take more blood and money and the bigger question is why? WHY? Please support our kids(troops) Bring them home!

The goal was to depose a dictatorship.
Have both Bush and Cheney stand trial for War Crimes.

Then it will be mission accomplished.

You can't instill a demomcratic system with bombs.

Uncle sam is basically clinching his fist at all of Iraq and telling them to "Be Free or Die"

And should they decide in favor of western style freedom, they will owe Uncle Sam money for the rest of their lives all the way to their great great great great grandchildren's.

Meanwhile a small percentage of our countries elite will prosper more (as the big corporate share holders) while the middle class and the poor continue to carry the burden.

Who hijacked my America?

The mission WAS accomplished: President Bush was re-elected. That banner was as honest as it was cynical.

What mission? That's part of the problem. The General doesn't know,the President doesn't know, Congress doesn't know, and the troops are the pawns in the middle of it all.

We can only accomplish this mission by dealing with Iran and Syria as well. It will never end. As far as the entire middle east is concerned. It is all or nothing. We started this and it will only be finished when we deal with each and every country.

Mission – clearly the current mission is to minimize the civil war in Iraq. And this is something that the American public is not being truthfully told. When the battle is between Sadr and his militia (and other similar groups) and the little Iraqi army – we are talking a CIVIL WAR. Yes, Iran is providing some support – but this is probably as much to keep the fight in Iraq and not have it come into its space.

The Americans are not supporting this mission – and Bush is clearly undeterred – just recall the Cheney comment 'So?'

Bush and Co should stop spinning this – but they have nothing else to show for their massively failed administration. They are even minimizing the Israel/Hamas expectations to see if something else can happen – how pitiful.

McCain will continue the Bush mission – so he can not come on board. Unfortunately the Dems are slicing each other up and forgetting this primary mission.

Ladies and Gentlemen: The "Mission" truly was accomplished when it was found that Iraq did not have a WMD program. That was the mission. We were told to invade Iraq, because Saddam had ties to terrorism (Later proved false), and that he possessed an active WMD program (Also later proved to be false).
So yes indeed. "Mission Accomplished". And now hopefully the American public will wake up to the level of deception U.S. Intelligence Agencies have been forced to feed us.

Dear Jack:

There is no need for an answer from anyone except the President. What is important is the question–and the fact that you asked it.
Thanks.

Ed Erwin,
Department of Philosophy
University of Miami

Define, IN EXACT DETAIL, the terms "mission," "accomplish," and "winning." This is part of the problem, the MSM are loath to nail Bush's hide to the wall and force him to be very specific. As long as Bush can weasly word his way through every day, the war will go on endlessly and only our soldiers will pay a devastating price.

Mission Accomplished? Tell that to the 4064 troops we've lost. Who thought this idiot of a commander in chief and his flunky bunch of duds could make another know-it-all Texan and his bunch of whiz kids look like brilliant war strategists, LBJ in case you can't figure who the know-it-all is.

If the mission was and continues to be about the US losing it's credibility, we've certainly accomplished that. We need to realize once and for all that we have no right being a policing force in this world.