Laws unpassed, Iraqi parliament calls summer break

[The Reaper]

This is really hard to stomach, given the cost in blood and treasure to the U.S. every month in trying to help these guys fix their problems. Patience is wearing thin right now.

The way things are going, they will barely be back and on their first cup of tea when the Dims manage to ram through a surrender bill and we leave.

Good to know that politicians suck everywhere, not just here.

TR

Laws unpassed, Iraqi parliament calls summer break
30 Jul 2007 14:17:31 GMT
Reuters

BAGHDAD, July 30 (Reuters) - Iraq's parliament adjourned for its summer recess on Monday, taking a break until September despite having failed to enact a series of laws demanded by Washington.

Parliamentary speaker Mahmoud Mashhadani said in a statement issued after Monday's session that he had dismissed lawmakers until Sept. 4.

"Parliament has decided to break until early September," Hussein Falluji of the mainly Sunni Accordance Front bloc in parliament told Reuters.

"We have already cut the holiday by one month. It is our constitutional right to take it."

The recess means parliament will resume just before U.S. military commander General David Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker are due to report back to Congress on the success of this year's "surge" in U.S. troops to Iraq.

A preliminary White House assessment earlier this month faulted Iraqi leaders for failing to enact laws aimed at curbing violence, including measures to distribute oil revenue, hold provincial elections and loosen restrictions on members of Saddam Hussein's Baath party returning to public life.

[Kyobanim]

Good to know that politicians suck everywhere

Just like death and taxes

[Sdiver]

Oh please tell me they didn't vote themselves a pay raise as well, before they left for vacation.

Originally Posted by The Reaper

This is really hard to stomach, given the cost in blood and treasure to the U.S. every month in trying to help these guys fix their problems. Patience is wearing thin right now.

Agree 100%

They should be fixing their problems first, before they jet off on their vacation.

[rubberneck]

"Parliament has decided to break until early September," Hussein Falluji of the mainly Sunni Accordance Front bloc in parliament told Reuters.

"We have already cut the holiday by one month. It is our constitutional right to take it."

God, these dimwits sound like veterans of our Congress. It is all about them and not those whom they serve. Who cares that their country is in dire straights. They need their month off because they are exhausted from stealing billions of dollars from the US Government.

[incommin]

Look, we wrote most of their constitution and they are just taking lessons from our leaders in DC..... What have they done the past four years..... and they take August off too........

Jim

[Scimitar]

Originally Posted by The Reaper

"We have already cut the holiday by one month. It is our constitutional right to take it."

OUR CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHT!

Wow these guys really don't get it do they.

Rights = Responsibilities

Out boys do 24 hours days to save their ass, and their tired after a 6 hour day / 3 day week.

Truly amazing.

Scimitar

[nmap]

Perhaps they are not so politically naive - but rather, have a cunning plan. (Fans of the Black Adder series may recognize the quote from Baldrick).

As I understand it, the Shiites in Iraq are the majority - 60%? - of the population, and they have a plurality in the parliament. Thus, they can effectively prevent any new legislation.

The Shiites, again according to my limited and probably flawed understanding, seem to have a favorable position on the ground. But - the U.S. is helping and arming Sunnis.

Is it possible they actually want the U.S. to depart so they can have their Shiite state? Iran, and the al-Sadrites would be pleased. The lack of progress, along with a month-long vacation certain to inflame U.S. public opinion, could (perhaps?) be calculated to force issue. After the U.S. withdraws, the Shiites could deal with the Sunnis, and after them the Kurds.

Maybe they care about their country, if that is defined as a Shiite state. But they do not care about the existing multiethnic state.

[Gypsy]

Very disappointed to read this today.

[Guy]

Originally Posted by The Reaper

Parliamentary speaker Mahmoud Mashhadani said in a statement issued after Monday's session that he had dismissed lawmakers until Sept. 4.

Ramadan is from Sept. 13 thru Oct 13 this year....

Stay safe.

[x-factor]

I'm not defending the Iraqi parliament. I'm just as uncomfortable relying on them as anyone here, but let me throw a bit of optimism in here.

Its possible that the Iraqis may get more dealmaking done in the cafe backrooms while on vacation than they're able to do in open session. As it stands now they can't even get a quorum, so keeping them in session just for symbolism sake isn't necessarily a good thing.

They'll come back into session just before Petraeus and Crocker come to testify to Congress and they're smart enough to realize they've got to deliver some legislation before then. Until then I'm sure our embassy will be working overtime to get the necessary deals cut.

We'll see.

[Scimitar]

Originally Posted by nmap

As I understand it, the Shiites in Iraq are the majority - 60%? - of the population, and they have a plurality in the parliament. Thus, they can effectively prevent any new legislation.

The Shiites, have a favorable position on the ground. But - the U.S. is helping and arming Sunnis.

Is it possible they actually want the U.S. to depart so they can have their Shiite state? Iran, and the al-Sadrites would be pleased. The lack of progress, along with a month-long vacation certain to inflame U.S. public opinion, could (perhaps?) be calculated to force issue. After the U.S. withdraws, the Shiites could deal with the Sunnis, and after them the Kurds.

Maybe they care about their country, if that is defined as a Shiite state. But they do not care about the existing multiethnic state.

After the U.S. withdraws, the Shiites could deal with the Sunnis, and after them the Kurds.

OK, I wade into this one with some trepidation. MODs Please ignore or delete if inappropriate.

Although I am only an 18X contract yet to be selected or graduate I am hoping for the ME AOR of 3rd or 5th group as the ME has always been of some interest to me (hence the screen name Scimitar). In this hope I have been spending some time educating myself on this AOR. (and simply because I have always found this stuff fascinating)

I am wanting to lay down what I predict is going to happen in the ME in my very very very limited understanding of it, so as those who are more enlightened can tear it apart, so that I and others of us might learn a thing or three.

In saying that here it goes.

As 'Nmap' stated above the Shiites have an agenda and although we are now 'winning' in Iraq in the sense that we will be able to provide enough temporary stability for a political solution to be hammered out, the parties simply will not see reason and play the game.

The Key Performance Indicated that congress is looking for simply will not be meet, due to the majority Shiite government agenda and we (the military) will be forced to either partially of wholly withdraw due to political meddling.

The Shiites will create a partly or wholly Shiite government, trampling the Sunnis under foot to a greater or lesser degree either literally or politically and then go after the Kurds cos they got the oil.

The Kurds will resist and we will likely assist them as we will begin to see them as a second Israel in the ME, this will bring a greater raise to the desire for Kurdistan which will of course make Turkey, Iran, etc unhappy as this will have to include some of their territory.

We will have another 1948 Israeli independence type thing on our hands and...(not that we helped much in that one)

Abracadabra we're back in the ME fighting almost the same fight again in 10 years? And probably with SF heading the charge with UW and Kurdish units.

I am new to ME History and US Politics so please don't feel that I am defeatist here it just seems that this is where all the information I am reading is headed. Of course being new to the US I have yet to get my head around which sources can be trusted and which are simply pushing a barrow.

Sorry about the long one here, but I'd be fascinated to understand what some of the probable outcomes predicted out there are.

(MODS...might be better in Area Studies area?)

RIGHT....have at it!