Out of Iraq: A Practical Plan for Withdrawal Now

During the phased withdrawal, to begin on December 31, 2006, and to be completed by June 30, 2007, they recommend that the Iraq government engage the temporary services of an international stabilization force to police the country. Other elements in the withdrawal plan include an independent accounting of American expenditures of Iraqi funds, reparations to Iraqi civilians for lives lost and property destroyed, immediate release of all prisoners of war, the closing of American detention centers, and offering to void all contracts for petroleum exploration, development, and marketing made during the American occupation.

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George McGovern Is A World Citizen and Still Right On- Out of Iraq, 2008-01-18
George McGovern and his colleague are right on with their excellent writing and history of the Iraq War. I don't know of any other politician, statesman, academician who has come up with a more comprehensive and detailed and practical plan for withdrawal now -Out of Iraq. I would highly recommend to anyone who can handle the truth.


2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

i pray we'll listen, 2007-08-08
In 1972 George McGovern lost the presidential election to Richard Nixon by an Electoral College vote of 520-17. He even lost his home state of South Dakota, due in large part to his "liberal" opposition to the war in Vietnam. The ridicule he endured was intense. Thirty-five years later, I dare say that history views him differently. Perhaps with this book we'll listen to him now. After serving as a bomber pilot in World War II, earning a PhD from Northwestern University, and serving in both the House and Senate for over twenty years, McGovern has distinguished himself with a broad array of humanitarian causes. His co-author William Polk taught at Harvard and the University of Chicago, in addition to serving as a Middle East specialist in the State Department.

The title of their book is a bit misleading. In the first four chapters they explain why we need to exit Iraq. They view the war as not only a "calamitous mistake" but a "terrible and useless waste" of people and finances because, ultimately, the war as it has been waged is unwinnable. The longer we stay the worse it will get, so true patriotism and true support of our troops means we should exit Iraq as soon as possible. Especially helpful in these first four chapters is a general and simple history of Iraq with special focus since the British invasion in World War I. McGovern and Polk are harsh in their verdict about the rationale for the war; the many falsehoods the public has been told were due partly to gross incompetence but also to deliberate deception. Beyond the many costs of the war to our country and even the world, the public's trust of its political institutions has been badly corroded. Only in a fifth chapter do the authors explain how we might leave. Reading their 24 bullet points (pp. 96-122) about the military, economic, cultural, civic, political, social, and moral complexities of any exit of any sort makes you realize just how catastrophic the war has been. This is a debacle that will take decades to repair, and the sooner we start the better.


1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

Simply irrefutable, 2007-04-10
This is a crisply presented book, a solid introduction to basic Iraqi history, and a step-by-step prescription for getting the US troops out and keeping the region stable. When you read it, the simplicity, clarity, and humanity is a great contrast to the obfuscation you get from any politician or tv "reporter" talking about the Iraq war.


1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

Great information, 2007-03-08
Sen. Mcgovern writes a book that is easy to read and follow. His information is so good, that I had to reread some pages twice!!!


24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

The "Go Home" Option for Iraq, 2007-01-12
As I write this review shortly after the midterm elections, parties on all sides of the Iraq War are awaiting with great anticipation the report of the Baker Hamilton "Iraq Study Group." Whatever that effort produces, an exit strategy is already available in this short, aptly titled book by two well known experts on the Middle East.

After he retired from politics, Senator George McGovern resumed his prior profession of teaching history and headed the Middle East Policy Council in Washington for six years. William R. Polk taught Middle East history and politics at Harvard and Chicago, published many books on the region, and has closely studied Iraq since he first visited Baghdad in 1947. In 2005 he published Understanding Iraq, a highly readable 213 page history.

The two authors have collaborated on a book that recaps what Iraq is and who the Iraqis are, analyzes the effects of the invasion and occupation on Iraq and on America, and then lays out in a single chapter a 24 point exit strategy, followed by a brief warning about the dire consequences
of our not making a reasonably rapid exit. They foresee a phased withdrawal of all foreign military troops by June 30, 2007, including the 25,000 mercenaries euphemistically called "Personal Security Details" provided by 50 foreign firms. They put their plan's cost at about $14 billion -- a true bargain considering projections that another two years of the occupation would cost at least $350 billion. They insist that the plan must be implemented as a coordinated whole.

To facilitate the transition, McGovern and Polk urge the Iraqi government to request the short-term services of an international force to help police the country during and after our withdrawal, perhaps remaining for as much as two years. This force should be drawn from Arab and/or other
Muslim countries, whose personnel would be much better equipped with an understanding of the culture, religion, language and traditions of the Iraqi populace to carry out police work.

There is not space here to describe the plan's other 22 points in detail, but a good many are worthy of mention. For instance, the authors view the training of a permanent Iraqi national police force as essential, but oppose recreation of a national army, which in the past has been more disruptive than helpful. They also call for Washington to release all prisoners of war and to close our detention centers as soon as possible. To counter the impression that we plan to stay in Iraq long-term we must cease construction of some 14 "enduring" American military bases now under way (five of which are as large as cities). For similar reasons, we should vacate the Green Zone by the end of 2007.

The authors also urge the U.S. to fund a project to hire and train Iraqis to find and destroy mines, unexploded ordnance and depleted uranium; pay reparations for loss of lives and property; and allow Iraq to renegotiate oil contracts entered into during the occupation. Finally, though it may be hard for us to do it, America should express its condolences for the large number of Iraqis killed, incapacitated, incarcerated and tortured. This cost free gesture would help greatly to restore our reputation in Iraq, the region, and the world.

McGovern and Polk close by calling on all Americans to acknowledge the debt we owe to the men and women who served in Iraq, and to treat them as well as were the returning veterans from World War II: "Now is the time for healing the wounds of war and trying to understand its lessons. The veterans of the war in Iraq especially need and deserve a comprehensive rehabilitation -- physically, mentally, educationally and economically, including the highly successful offerings of the World War II G.I. Bill of Rights."

This brief book provides a reasonable, workable and inexpensive road map for extricating ourselves from the Iraq quagmire. It should be essential reading not only for all decision makers and their advisers in Washington, but all Americans.

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