Soldiers Advise Not to Leave Iraq

With the election tomorrow and Iraq being the central focus of the election issues, the general strategy of the war hinges on the makeup of Congress. And to some extent, the war depends on how we vote tomorrow.

The question in many minds today is what to do with Iraq. In this WaPo article, some of our finest help answer that question.

From Josh White (no relation):

"Take us out of that vacuum -- and it's on the edge now -- and boom, it would become a free-for-all," said Lt. Col. Mark Suich, who commands the 1st Squadron, 89th Cavalry Regiment just south of Baghdad. "It would be a raw contention for power. That would be the bloodiest piece of this war."

The soldiers declined to discuss the political jousting back home, but they expressed support for the Bush administration's approach to the war, which they described as sticking with a tumultuous situation to give Iraq a chance to stand on its own.

...soldiers criticized the idea of a precipitate withdrawal, largely because they believe their hard work would go for naught.

There are a lot of people out there saying we did the wrong thing by going into Iraq, and now that we're there, it has become worse. In some respects it has. But from those who say it's bad, their solution is to make it worse, is it not?

In Rushdi Mullah, a small farming village near Baghdad, Capt. Chris Vitale, 29, of Washington, Pa., said his unit's recent moves to the edge of this insurgent safe haven have made a major difference for residents. "If my unit left town, the insurgents would come back in and use it to stage attacks on Baghdad," he said. "I'm sure of it."

What's the American thing to do?