Clap Louder, Bremer!

The New York Times also published a column today from L. Paul (“Jerry”) Bremer III, the former head of the Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq from 2003 to 2004. Bremer defends himself against the charge that he disbanded the Iraqi military (which kick-started the insurgency that our military is fighting to this day) after the fall of Saddam Hussein, saying that that came from Washington.

I actually think he’s right. However, he should have stood up to Bushco and told them that it reflected monstrous stupidity that has resulted in the present horrific consequences (but, like all of the other prominent players in this tragedy, he refused to do so).

The beginning of the crisis after the military was disbanded was noted in this prior post based on “State of Denial” by Bob Woodward, particularly this excerpt…

In the days after the order disbanding the military, vehicles traveling the road between Baghdad and the airport started coming under attack more regularly. Crowds began to gather to protest the order, although reports differed greatly as to how many people turned out each time. On May 19 (2003), about 500 people demonstrated outside the Coalition Provisional Authority’s gates. A week later, on May 26, a larger crowd gathered to demonstrate. Some Arab media reports that were later translated and given to Bremer’s team said there were as many as 5,000 protesters.

“We demand the formulation of a government as soon as possible, the restoration of security, rehabilitation of public institutions, and disbursement of the salaries of all military personnel,” said one of the leaders of the protest, an Iraqi major general named Sahib al-Musawi. His speech was carried over the Arabic-language television network Al Jazeera, and later translated for the CPA. “If our demands are not met, next Monday will mark the start of estrangement between the Iraqi army and people on one hand and the occupiers on the other.”

Paul Hughes now had to deal with the former Iraqi officers who wanted their soldiers to be given the $20 emergency payments, but who were now shut out under the Bremer order. Hughes stalled for awhile but finally went to see the officers.

“Colonel Paul, what happened?” asked Mirjan Dhiya, their English-speaking spokesman.

“I don’t know,” Hughes said. “I can’t tell you what happened. I’m as shocked as you are.”

“Colonel Paul, we have men who have families. They have no food. They are running out. We need to do something.”

Hughes finally got Slocombe’s chief of staff to meet with the former Iraqi military representative. There was still a possibility that they might get the $20 each, but things were moving very slowly.

This is all the more tragic when you read in Bremer’s column today that, on May 19th, he was receiving a final draft from Rummy and Douglas Feith (the imprimatur of those two more than anyone else besides Cheney marks this current mess) about the disbanding of the Iraqi Army, which British military officials in London considered a “fait accompli.” Do you think any of the 500 who protested to Paul Hughes would have been happy to return to the Army and receive a pay check as opposed to joining the insurgency instead (to say nothing of the 5,000 protesting a week later)?

I also shook my head when I read this excerpt from Bremer today…

Moreover, we were right to build a new Iraqi Army. Despite all the difficulties encountered, Iraq’s new professional soldiers are the country’s most effective and trusted security force.

It would be nice if this “effective and trusted security force” were good enough to let some of our soldiers come home by now, wouldn’t it (but I guess that’s because they won’t be “effective and trusted” in Iraq for the next 12 to 18 months, at least, as noted here).

But I guess such self-promoting behavior in denial of reality is about what we can expect from some neocon sycophant who was schooled by this guy.