With the war in Iraq turning into a nightmare, increasing numbers -- on the left and the right -- are calling for America to withdraw.
Just a month ago, the conventional wisdom on Iraq was that America, having smashed the old system, has a responsibility to stay until something new and better is built. While the antiwar left and the libertarian right issued calls to end the occupation, most mainstream voices, even those who had opposed the war, counseled perseverance.
But after the insurgency of April and the torture scandal of May, that's beginning to change. There's now a growing chorus on both the left and the right demanding that the administration acknowledge that its Iraq adventure is an unsalvageable failure and cut America's (and Iraq's) losses by bringing the troops home. The call for withdrawal hasn't yet reached critical mass, but if it does, it could affect both the dynamics of the 2004 election and the future of American involvement in Iraq.
"What used to be voices on the far fringe, whether it's the fringe left or fringe right, they are steadily creeping in towards the center," says Peter Feaver, a professor of political science at Duke University who served as director for defense policy and arms control on Bill Clinton's National Security Council. Calls to leave Iraq, he says, "are marching towards the middle of the establishment."
As the taboo against discussing withdrawal fades, critics are increasingly less deferential to the idea that America must finish what it began in Iraq, however foolish its invasion.
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http://salon.com/news/feature/2004/05/10/withdrawal/index.html