U.S. Representative, MN District 6 |
Statement on the Iraq War
On August 27, I recorded a candidate statement for the Ramsey/Washington Counties Suburban Cable Commission, through its Government Television Network (GTN). The statement was cablecast on GTN TV-16 prior to the Sept. 9 Minnesota state primary election. My initial motivation for challenging Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) for the Republican nomination was her enthusiastic support for the destructive neocon policies that gave us the Iraq War.
On this historic Election Day, Nov. 4, 2008, I republish my Statement on the Iraq War and put my case to the voters of Minnesota’s 6th Congressional District. Following is the text of my statement.
My name is Aubrey Immelman and I’m challenging the party-endorsed candidate for the Republican nomination in the Sixth Congressional District.
My main reason for running is U.S. national security — specifically, the unintended consequences of the Iraq war.
Plain and simple, the invasion of Iraq was a mistake.
More than just exacting a huge cost in American blood, treasure, and loss of international stature, our military intervention in Iraq has created complex security challenges for the United States.
Before the invasion, we had in place a very successful containment policy against Iraqi aggression — preserving a delicate balance of power between Iran and Iraq in one of the world’s most volatile regions, the Middle East.
The removal of Saddam has empowered Iran, with its nuclear ambitions, and placed Iraq under the control of Islamist Shiite leaders closely aligned with Iran — thereby creating an infinitely more serious threat to U.S. national security in the region than existed before the invasion.
I’m the only candidate in the Sixth District congressional race with military experience, trained as an airborne soldier in counterinsurgency and anti-terrorist operations and with professional credentials as a military consultant on nuclear counterproliferation, threat assessment, deterrence, and psychological operations.
I offer my specialized training and expertise to help secure the vital national security interests of the United States in the wake of the attacks of 9/11 and emerging security threats triggered by the ill-conceived, short-sighted Iraq war.
I have not taken any money to run for office, am not beholden to special interests, and come with no strings attached. My first responsibility will be to ordinary Minnesotans in the Sixth District.
In my campaign, I have walked the length of the District, 100 miles from Freeport in the north to Stillwater in the south, and across the District, 50 miles from Foley in the east to Paynesville in the west. With my feet firmly on the ground, my loyalties are clear.
I disdain the deplorable level of partisanship in Washington. I will reach across the aisle, where possible, to get things done and will strive to work productively with all reasonable people. Despite ideological differences, were all American.
There are some things worth dying for. But invading countries that pose no imminent threat to the United States is not one of them.
I’m Aubrey Immelman, and Im asking for your vote September 9.
Thank you.
Voters are advised that for write-in votes to be counted, the name of the write-in candidate must be written in on the ballot and the oval circle to the left of the name must be clearly marked.
———
IRAQ UPDATE
Iraqis Divided Over Which U.S. Candidate Can Rebuild
November 2, 2008
BAGHDADÂ — Iraqis hope the outcome of this week’s U.S. presidential election will help them repair the wounds of war but, like Americans, they differ on whether Republican John McCain or Democrat Barack Obama can truly do so.
In conversations across Iraq on Sunday, Iraqis were divided about which candidate would help improve their lives more than five years after the U.S.-led invasion to topple Saddam Hussein.
“I hope the winner will be the person who can return what Americans have taken from Iraq,” said Abu Karrar al-Sa’aidi, a real estate broker in central Baghdad.
Tens of thousands of Iraqis have died since 2003, and attacks go on in some parts of the country even though violence in October hit its lowest level since the war began. Iraq’s economy is in tatters and basic services such as electricity and clean water are a luxury for millions of people. …
Iraq remains a dangerous place, and many people here are bitter about the price Iraq has paid since 2003. …
———
Bombs Targeting Iraqi Police, Officials Kill 10
One attack just misses Oil Ministry official;
two other blasts go off in crowd
November 3, 2008
BAGHDADÂ — A series of bombings, including one that narrowly missed a senior Oil Ministry official and two that went off in a crowd during Baghdad’s morning rush, killed 10 people on Monday, officials said. …
Monday’s explosions largely appeared to target Iraqi police, soldiers and officials rather than U.S. troops.
Two bombs — one of them hidden in a trash can — exploded in Tahariyat Square in central Baghdad during the morning rush hour, killing six people, injuring 21 and damaging nearby shops in the predominantly Shiite neighborhood. Ten of the wounded were policemen.
Elsewhere in the capital, a bomb exploded at the home of Abdul-Sahib Salman Qutub, one of three senior undersecretaries in the Oil Ministry, as he left for work. Qutub suffered minor injuries, but his driver was gravely wounded, ministry spokesman Assem Jihad said.
Another bomb exploded around noon near a police patrol in west Baghdad, injuring one policeman and a civilian, while another officer died and six others were wounded when their patrol hit a roadside bomb in east Baghdad, police said.
In Baqouba, some 35 miles northeast of the capital, a car bomb exploded in a parking lot across the street from the Diyala provincial council headquarters, killing two policemen and a 10-year-old girl, authorities said.
Nine others — three of them policemen — were wounded in the blast, which occurred while a conference on defending journalism and freedom of expression was going on inside. None of the meeting’s participants were injured in the attack. …
———
Following are security developments in Iraq on Nov. 4, 2008 as reported by Reuters.
BAGHDAD – Seven people were killed and 18 were wounded in an explosion at a car park in the al-Mashtal area of eastern Baghdad, police said.
BAGHDAD – Four people were killed and eight were wounded when a roadside bomb exploded in the al-Qahira district of northern Baghdad, police said.
MOSUL – Gunmen killed an off-duty police officer in a drive-by shooting in eastern Mosul, police said.
MOSUL – One civilian was killed and another wounded by a roadside bomb targeting an Iraq army patrol in eastern Mosul, police said.
MOSUL – Two bodies were found in two different parts of Mosul, police said.
MOSUL – Gunmen killed a civilian in a drive-by shooting in northern Mosul, police said.
MOSUL – Gunmen shot dead a civilian in a drive-by in eastern Mosul, police said.
MOSUL – Five civilians were wounded by a roadside bomb attack in northern Mosul, police said.
BAGHDAD – One bystander was killed and three were wounded in a shootout between Iraqi soldiers and gunmen in Baghdad’s Sadr City neighborhood near a memorial ceremony for the anniversary of the death of a Shi’ite cleric, Baghdad security spokesman Qassim Moussawi said.
BAGHDAD – Gunmen killed one policeman and wounded three others when they opened fire in the Ghadir district of eastern Baghdad, police said.
MOSUL – Gunmen shot dead a policeman in western Mosul, police said.
MOSUL – A suicide car bomb wounded four policemen when it targeted their patrol in southern Mosul, police said.
MOSUL – Gunmen killed one man, wounding two of his brothers, on Monday in eastern Mosul, 240 miles north of Baghdad, police said.
BAGHDAD – A policeman was wounded when a bomb, which had been planted on his car, exploded, also wounding his two children in the Karrada district of central Baghdad, police said.
TIKRIT – Two Iraqi civilians were killed following a traffic accident involving the U.S. military near Tikrit, 95 miles north of Baghdad, the military said in a statement.
BAGHDAD – A bomb planted on a car killed one person and wounded five others in the Karrada district of central Baghdad, police said.
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