Post-war Planning was Non-existent

• Bush Failed to have Iraq Exit Plan
  

In March 2003, days before the start of the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, American war planners and intelligence officials met at Shaw Air Force Base in South Carolina to review the Bush administration's plans to oust Saddam Hussein and implant democracy in Iraq. Near the end of his presentation, an Army lieutenant colonel who was giving a briefing showed a slide describing the Pentagon's plans for rebuilding Iraq after the war, known in the planners' parlance as Phase 4-C. He was uncomfortable with his material - and for good reason. The slide said: "To Be Provided." A Knight Ridder review of the administration's Iraq policy and decisions has found that it invaded Iraq without a comprehensive plan in place to secure and rebuild the country. The administration also failed to provide some 100,000 additional U.S. troops that American military commanders originally wanted to help restore order and reconstruct a country shattered by war, a brutal dictatorship and economic sanctions. [more ] and [more ] and [more ]

• INSURGENCY COULD HAVE BEEN AVOIDED: The New York Times reports [here ] the dangerous insurgency now hindering the election process wasn't inevitable: the chief intelligence officer for the war states, "We had momentum going in and had Saddam's forces on the run." That was lost because "we did not have enough troops," he concludes. "They took advantage of our limited numbers." [more ]
  
• U.S. policy in Iraq repeatedly faulted in recent studies [more ]
• Tallying the Dead: How Many Iraqis Are Dying? By One Count, 208 in a Week [more ]
• Marines Vent Frustration in Western Iraq [more ]
  
• "Thanks to our brave troops and a coalition of nations, America is now more secure, the world is more peaceful and Iraq is free." Bush speaking at an RNC Gala on 10/8/2003 [more ]
• Watch this video  - 2001: Powell & Rice Declare Iraq Has No WMD and Is Not a Threat [more ] from the Memoryhole.org [here ]