Gingrich calls Iraq war a 'failure'

Gingrich calls Iraq war a 'failure'
© Copyright 2006 Globe Newspaper Company.
November 29, 2006
In N.H., says Bush must admit that to regain trust

By James W. Pindell, Globe Correspondent | November 29, 2006

BEDFORD, N.H. -- Former House speaker Newt Gingrich told a New Hampshire audience yesterday that unless the Bush administration admits that the war in Iraq is a "failure," it will never develop a strategy to leave the country successfully.
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Gingrich, who has been laying the groundwork for a presidential run, said the Bush administration needs to plan a "third stage" in Iraq, following the military takeover stage and the recent democracy-building stage. But he says a third stage can come about only if officials admit they must change course.

"If the military, White House, and State Department continue to avoid the word 'failure,' how can you bring about a third stage?" Gingrich said.

Gingrich was in New Hampshire for three campaign-style events Monday night and yesterday. While the former speaker has expressed interest in a presidential run, he said yesterday that he is more interested in injecting ideas in to the 2008 campaign than in putting his name on the ballot. He said he will not seriously entertain a presidential campaign until September.

Gingrich, who served on a key Pentagon board that advised Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld in the runup to the Iraq war, was eager to distance himself from the Bush administration's handling of the war.

He said a show of contrition by the White House would help the president regain the trust of the American people and avoid a quick pullout, which would be disastrous.

The first goal in Iraq, Gingrich said, should be to rebuild the national military, even if it requires spending tantamount to the Marshall Plan effort in the aftermath of World War II, in which the United States spent up to 3 percent of its gross domestic product.

"We have to show we are serious about winning and that we will defeat any person, Sunni or Shi'ite, that hopes to disrupt progress," he said. "But we can only do that if we have Iraqi troops on the ground."

Speaking at various campaign-style events, Gingrich reiterated his belief that the Republican Party's loss of Congress earlier this month was attributable to a failure to follow conservative principles, particularly concerning spending.

On Monday night, Gingrich was the keynote speaker at a First Amendment dinner sponsored by the Union Leader of Manchester, the state's largest and historically conservative newspaper.

Yesterday morning he appeared at the classic New Hampshire primary stop "Politics and Eggs," where he fiercely defended the first-in-the-nation status of the Granite State's presidential primary on the grounds that its small size and engaged electorate make it a forum for a discussion of ideas.

The former speaker also met privately with David Carney , a New Hampshire-based consultant who was the White House political director during the George H. W. Bush presidency. He wrapped up his visit by addressing 100 Republican legislators and activists at a lunch meeting that was part pep rally and part lecture on how to build a strong party.

The lecture was well-received by Republican leaders.

"He was exactly the right person we needed to hear from," said State Representative George Katsakiores , a Derry Republican.