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Politics : GOPwinger Lies/Distortions/Omissions/Perversions of Truth -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Karen Lawrence who wrote (27142)	10/5/2004 7:00:09 AM
From: Ron	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 173976

Bremer criticizes troop levels, then backs off Tue Oct 5, 1:41 AM ET WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. intervention in Iraq (news - web sites) was hampered early on by a lack of adequate forces and efforts to contain looting after the ouster of Saddam Hussein according to the former U.S. administrator in Iraq. "We paid a big price for not stopping it because it established an atmosphere of lawlessness," Paul Bremer said in a speech reported by The Washington Post on Tuesday. "We never had enough troops on the ground." Bremer's comments echoed charges by administration critics who argue that the U.S. government failed to plan adequately to maintain security in post-war Iraq, the newspaper said. In the speech on Monday at an insurance conference in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia, Bremer said U.S. plans for the postwar period erred in projecting what would happen after Hussein's demise, focusing on preparing for humanitarian relief and widespread refugee problems rather than a bloody insurgency now being waged by at least four well-armed factions, according to the Post. "There was planning, but planning for a situation that didn't arise," Bremer was quoted as saying. A Bremer aide told the newspaper that those comments, as well as similar remarks last month at DePauw University, were for private audiences and were supposed to have been off the record. In a statement e-mailed to the Washington Post late on Monday, Bremer stressed that he fully supports the Bush administration's plan for training Iraqi security forces as well as its overall strategy for Iraq. "I believe that we currently have sufficient troop levels in Iraq," he said in the statement. --- Looks like Rove is losing his tight grip on things. First Rummie, now Bremer. Finger-pointing has begun.