Menendez defends plan to exit Iraq
2006-10-19
Source: Press Of Atlantic City
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rss feedU.S. Sen. Robert Menendez on Wednesday defended his one-year timeline for removing U.S. troops from Iraq, noting that the country's prime minister and its national security adviser have both said a year is enough time for Iraqi troops to stand on their own.
In a wide-ranging interview with The Press of Atlantic City's editorial board, Menendez discussed his ideas for a transition out of Iraq, his reluctant support for President Bush's detainee bill and the bitter tone of his election battle with Republican state Sen. Tom Kean Jr. A longtime congressman from Hudson County, Menendez was appointed to the U.S. Senate by Gov. Jon S. Corzine in January and currently holds a small lead over Kean in most polls.
Iraq has been the focal point of the Menendez campaign.
While Kean contends Menendez's one-year timeline for exiting Iraq will lead to a humanitarian crisis, Menendez said continuing the war would make the United States less secure.
Menendez acknowledged that a transition could take as long as 18 months, but said he subscribed to the view of Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Peter Pace, who told him, "You need to get the Iraqis to love their children more than they hate their neighbors."
"Unless you let the Iraqis know that they have to make the hard choices, compromises and negotiations necessary for a government of national unity, they will never, ever make those choices," Menendez said. "Right now you have a power grab going on without an understanding that it's going to be incredibly necessary to share. You're not going to accomplish Iraqis loving their children more than hating their neighbors through military might."
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