Centerfield

Giuliani and Gingrich on Iraq Infrastructure

The former Mayor and Speaker of the House team up in the Wall Street Journal to co-author an op-ed on Iraq:

The American mission in Iraq must succeed. Our goal--promoting a stable, accountable democracy in the heart of the Middle East--cannot be achieved by purely military means.

Iraqis need to establish a civil society. Without the support of mediating civic and social associations--the informal ties that bind us together--no government can long remain stable, and no cohesive nation can be maintained. To establish a civil society, Iraqis must rebuild their basic infrastructure. Iraqis must take control of their destiny by rebuilding houses, stores, schools, roads, highways, mosques and churches...

The week before Christmas, the Pentagon asked Congress to approve a supplemental $100 billion for military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, on top of the estimated $500 billion spent to date. The administration should direct a small percent of that amount to create an Iraqi Citizen Job Corps, along the lines of FDR's Civilian Conservation Corps during the Great Depression...

Today, Iraq has almost 200 state-owned factories that have been abandoned by the governing authorities since the outbreak of war in 2003... Mr. Brinkley believes that under Department of Defense leadership, at least 10 of these facilities could be re-opened almost immediately, putting more than 10,000 Iraqis to work within weeks. This should be done without delay--and it is only the beginning...

One word of caution: The program should be overseen by the U.S. military, not private contractors, to avoid unnecessary delays in deployment or accusations of cronyism in the bidding process... After the program has been started and becomes successful, it can be transferred to a civilian authority within the Iraqi government.

Interesting points, but what they don't discuss is what we are going to take troops away from in order for them to take part in buidling infrastructure such as a jobs program.

Also interesting that two potential 2008 opponents are writing an op-ed together. Hmmm... What if a Giuliani-Gingrich ticket were to be formed before the Republican primary process took place? What if Giuliani sees Gingrich as a way to garner Conservative grass roots support and avoid questions about his stance on social issues? I'm just saying, nobody is as popular with the true red Republican primary voters as the former Speaker of the House, although a vote for him to be the Republican nominee would be a waste. Deep down Newt is smart enough to know that he doesn't have a chance on his own. What if they had the opportunity to vote for him and not waste their vote?