Reagan's Ghost Haunts the Bush Administration

The shade of Ronald Reagan has been spotted in the White House. He keeps moaning "El Salvador...! El Salvador...!"

Since then, there has been talk in the Administration, the military and the CIA about instituting US special forces trained and/or led Iraqi units to engage in operations throughout Iraq and even into Syria. What has yet to be decided though is whether these operations will be snatch-and-grabs or outright assassination. Having seen what occured in El Salvador and Central America during the Reagan administration, the latter choice seems to be the likely one.

Another strange reminder of that era is that John Negroponte is now the ambassador to Iraq, despite the fact that he has no previous experience in the Middle-East. He was however, US ambassador to Honduras during the Reagan administration. During that time, he was the goto for coordination between the the CIA and Nicaraguan Contra death-squads as well as the death-squad in Honduras. These two items, taken together seem to make the death-squad option the most likely choice.

That this discussion is occuring now...on the eve of elections in Iraq...shows just how desperate the situation is becoming in that country. The insurgents strike with impunity and increasing ferocity against both Iraqis and our troops, who were wrongly sent into harms way to begin with. We have the mass resignation of the members of the Independent Election Commission in Mosul...Polling places will not be named until shortly before the election...insurgents have warned that snipers will be stationed around polling places.

The best hope of salvaging the situation will be if Iraqi voters, as did voters in El Salvador, remain undeterred by these threats and turn out to vote despite them. Equally important is the participation of ALL parties...Sunni, Shia'a and Kurd as well as the other ethnic minorities. Failing either of these two things will lead to further chaos and likley a bloody civil war.

While we may fervently wish for a peaceful transfer of power to a legitimately elected government in Iraq and the safe return of our troops, wishing accomplishes nothing. We can only watch an wait. And pray to whatever powers we might believe in that peace, or at least a semblance of it, comes to pass.