Senator Joe Biden on Iraq at South Carolina Debate

[12raiders34]

biden is the best candidate on the democrat side. By far!!

[proy3]

Now that He's dropped out he'd be my numero uno for Obama's ticket. Obama/Biden '08

[micsc50]

The people of Darfur need protection but the people of Iraq don't. A ruthless dictator and his two mad dog sons don't count. Also a dictator that attacks his neighbors and shoots at our planes and violates the resolutions he vowed to follow. His one son Uday is running around raping 13 year old girls and torturing his soccer team if they lose. Where is the UN? Acting like democRATs maybe?

[micsc50]

Joe wants to pull out of Iraq then send 2500 troops to Darfur. He wants his own war he does not like Bush's war in Iraq. Typical hypocrite democRAT.

[Toxik03]

Good job Joe .... Joe Biden for Pres 2008

[U2387]

Again everyone, Iraq was carved by Great Britain at the end of WWI and the Ottoman Empire. It was created without regard to the 3 completely different religous and ethnic groups living there. Dividing it is in Iraq's current constitution and Biden is right to call for this.. if they wanted to live together, would they be killing eachother?? No, one group wants to dominate the central government AS IS, because it currently is being given too much power/potential by the Bush imbecille crowd!

[TheFilteredLight]

I went to Planforiraqdotcom and read over the basics of the Biden-Gelb plan. Sounds like a logical solution. It makes since that the Iraqis themselves should have come up with something similar without western interference. The US should step back and let the UN mediate between Iraqi groups concerning the future of Iraq. The West has done enough damage.

[U2387]

Absolutely, we should step back and make Iraq the world's problem, as Biden states. Seperating the parties is the only thing with even a prayer of working.. it worked in the Balkans, though not perfectly and has worked elsewhere. However, I make and Biden makes no gurantees, ideally, as you state, we dont come and do the damage in the first place. Again, not calling Biden/Gelb perfect, but at least gives them a chance while getting us the hell out! All the best.

[outononoite]

Yet nobody quite understands that there are sects within each individual sect of islam found in Iraq. Just because the Shia may get the South of Iraq does not necessarily mean that everybody will agree with their home-bred Shia government. Additionally, how do you fairly carve up Iraq? I can guarantee you that there will always be major resentment toward Western powers carving up a Middle Eastern country according to their liking. Do you really believe we will do it impartially?

[outononoite]

What if we did it based on population? Dont you think the Sunni's will receive funding from other Sunni nations to help reconquer some lost territory? What about the Kurds? Would stregnthening their resolve by handing them their own slice of Iraq be beneficial to the ongoing Kurd problem in Turkey and Iran? It sounds good on paper, but it will not work. Joe Biden is the best candidate out there, but this idea needs some serious revising.

[lillyraines]

Well done for using the debate footage despite NBC!

[TheFilteredLight]

Here is an idea. Why doesn't JoeBidendotcom post a series on YouTube that walks us through the details of his plan? Then he can tell us why he thinks it can work. No more sound bites!!!

[U2387]

Details are on his website! Biden-Gelb plan for Iraq on google is even more comprehensive. Did you watch this debate? It was ridiculous and only allowed for sound bites!! This will not be guranteed to work, Biden has said that, but the Balkans and history show us it has the best chance. Tell me what is better.. a dictator, want us to stay forever, want to let them just kill eachother off and draw the whole region in??

[TheFilteredLight]

Joe is smarter and more informed than I am, but what makes him think that the new states won't just go to war over total domination of Iraq?

Which group gets to control the land that sits on top of most of the good oil?

[U2387]

Oil revenues divided equally per Biden. However, religious/political differences are what they are fighting over and no one group wants to dominate a country that was never unified in the first place, they just fear one groups philosophy controlling the central govt. In Biden's plan, the regions can have whatever laws/traditions they want, central role is limited and wont be dominant, so the different sects wont aspire to control it!

[TheFilteredLight]

So how does Biden's plan prevent one group from dominating the "weak" central government and deciding that it wants to become a unitary state? Isn't that how we got into our Civil War?

[U2387]

Not exactly, we were not made up of semi-autonomous regions, we had a Constitution that was understood to be the supreme law of the land. Biden doesnt merely want states or provinces, Iraq already has that. Any comparisons to the US are fundamentally flawed.. we were a unified nation born of a revolution with a common goal, the civil war split came later over whose economic vision would win out. Iraq was DRAWN by a 3rd party, they were unwilling citizens of a made up state.

[runningchance]

I like Biden, but I doubt if he can win, too many dumb statements in his past, of course that never seemed to hurt any of the Bush's.

[indianarose3]

Good Answer.

[Gilbeys1929]

it could not be stated better