Clinton's Residual Forces in Iraq

When Sen Clinton mentions leaving a residual force in Iraq--numbers unspecified and mission unmentioned--one wonders what role US forces would play after a drawdown.http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/12/20/richardsonclinton/

Presumably, troops would guard the Green Zone, the airport, and the five mile highway to the airport, once known as 'the highway of death.' http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=Z5PAVFKCAGQ3JQFIQMFCFGGAVCBQYIV0?xml=/news/2005/12/10/wirq10.xml&sSheet=/portal/2005/12/10/ixportal.html

While ignorant myself of force structure needed to defend such an area, the memoir of Philip Caputo, A Rumor of War, described how the Marines of the 9th Expeditionary Brigade flew into Viet Nam to defend Da Nang Airport. As the Viet Cong switched from short range mortars to howitzers with longer range, the marines had to extend the defensive perimeter. http://www.amazon.com/Rumor-War-Philip-Caputo/dp/B000E1KPQE/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1198500947&sr=1-1

With surface to air missiles in Iraq, one wonders about the size of the perimeter and number of troops required to defend it, much less the highway. One also may fear that however the numbers work out to defend these critical areas, it leaves residual forces stationed longer than five years subject to encirclement or having supply lines cut. If 1 factors in a number of troops to protect supply lines running from Kuwait to Baghdad, US troops face significant casualties with no time limit specified by Senator Clinton.

''Senator Clinton's comments are a stunning flip-flop — she's been saying she would keep troops in Iraq for five years, until 2013, and now she comes up with an inconsistent, incredible turnaround,' Mr. Richardson said. Mrs. Clinton has maintained that she would leave a residual force behind in Iraq to pursue narrow missions, a position that her spokesman said she still holds. As her aides have done before, the spokesman declined to say how many troops Mrs. Clinton would leave. http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/12/20/richardsonclinton/Free use and distribution granted as long as Weblog and email address published.

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