Las Vegas Sun

March 19, 2024

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2008 Elections

Republicans on Iraq

 

John McCain (has secured nomination)
He favors keeping troops in Iraq until the war is won. He said the war had been mismanaged, but the surge is working. He favors sending in more troops to stabilize the country. If we pull out the troops from Iraq, the terrorists will bring the fight to America, he says. The U.S. must accelerate the training and equipping of Iraqi armed forces and police, he says.. . . more | Other issues | Bio

 

Ron Paul
He is the only Republican who voted against the war in Iraq. He has called for an immediate withdrawal. . . . more | Other issues | Bio

 

Rudy Giuliani (dropped out>
Setting an artificial timetable for withdrawal from Iraq now would be a terrible mistake, because it would only embolden our enemies. Iraq is only one front in the larger war on terror, and failure there would lead to a broader and bloodier regional conflict in the near future. Building an accountable Iraq will assist in reducing the threat of terrorism.. . . more | Other issues | Bio

 

Mike Huckabee (dropped out)
He says setting a timetable for withdrawal is a mistake. “This country has never declared war until ‘a week from Wednesday,’ we have always declared war until victory. I am focused on winning. Withdrawal would have serious strategic consequences for us and horrific humanitarian consequences for the Iraqis. I support a regional summit so that Iraq’s neighbors become militarily and financially committed to stabilizing Iraq.”... . . more | Other issues | Bio

 

Duncan Hunter (dropped out)
He says the U.S. should give the second phase of the military operation in Iraq - the troop surge - a chance to work. The key to winning in Iraq is to get all 129 Iraqi military battalions operational so they can eventually move into the combat field. When that is done, they can begin replacing American heavy combat troops and those U.S. troops can rotate out. . . . more | Other issues | Bio

 

Mitt Romney (dropped out)
Romney told Human Events in a December 2006 interview that the U.S. invasion of Iraq has not gone as smoothly as the government had hoped for, but that he believes that progress is happening. Romney firmly believes that Iraq must be stabilized so that outside influences cannot invade the country and cause civil unrest before any troops can be withdrawn. He believes that it is in America’s national security interests to create a strong central government and military rather than divide the country up into smaller sub-states. Without any clear pull out date nor a time table for withdrawal, Romney plans for standby troop support in and around Iraq for some time citing Iraq’s presence in context to what’s happening in the Middle East and around the world . . . more | Other issues | Bio

 

Tom Tancredo (dropped out)
He says the U.S. will be in Iraq for a long time and we can’t remove our troops from the area. However, they should be a supporting force, he said. He did not support the troop surge. He is in favor of beginning to shift military operational control over to the Iraqis. . . more | Other issues | Bio

 

Fred Thompson (dropped out)
He is opposed to any form of amnesty for illegal immigrants. Arrest and deportation is not a reasonable solution either. Self-deportation can be achieved by enforcing the laws against unauthorized alien workers and their employers. Without illegal job opportunities, fewer aliens will try to enter and those here illegally now will likely return home. The borders can be made more secure by doubling the immigration agents, by increasing the border patrol to at least 25,000 agents and by increasing the number of detention facilities to hold illegal aliens that have been arrested. We should also increase funding to prosecute alien smugglers, to prosecute illegal alien gangs and bolster border security. . . more | Other issues | Bio

 

— Las Vegas Sun new media managing editor Dave Toplikar and intern Jenna Kohler compiled this report.

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