Top US General in Iraq blasts White House
There’s going to be more and more pouring out like this for years to come:
General Sanchez is the most senior in a string of retired generals to harshly criticize the administration’s conduct of the war. Asked following his remarks why he waited nearly a year after his retirement to outline his views, he responded that that it was not the place of active duty officers to challenge lawful orders from civilian authorities. General Sanchez, who is said to be considering a book, promised further public statements criticizing officials by name.
“There was been a glaring and unfortunate display of incompetent strategic leadership within our national leaders,” he said, adding later in his remarks that civilian officials have been “derelict in their duties” and guilty of a “lust for power.”
Unlike the hierarchy of the Nazis and other criminally insane regimes, it’s good to see that our generals, at least, renounce the atrocities after the fact.
Of course, if they refused beforehand, they’d be accused as traitors so it’s really a no-win situation for them. Sanchez will be tarnished forever for his oversight at Abu Ghraib, even though he was following the orders of superiors in the White House.
Any who critique him cannot honestly do so without an accompanying condemnation of David Addington, John Yoo, Alberto Gonzalez, Doug Feith, Donald Rumsfeld, Dick Cheney and George W. Bush. But Bush apologists will settle for a hypocritical critique as they must.
That’s where the buck truly stops, but they’ll never ever admit it, as committed war criminals never do. May they die alone, and never know eternal rest.
