Withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq
Encyclopedia
The withdrawal of American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 military forces from Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....

has been a contentious issue within the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 since the beginning of the Iraq War. As the war has progressed from its initial 2003 invasion phase to a multi-year occupation, U.S. public opinion has turned in favor of troop withdrawal. As of May 2007, 55 percent of Americans believed that the Iraq war was a mistake, and 51 percent of registered voters favored troop withdrawal. In late April 2007, the U.S. Congress passed a supplementary spending bill for Iraq that sets a deadline for troop withdrawal, but President Bush vetoed this bill soon afterwards. All US Forces
United States Forces – Iraq
United States Forces - Iraq is a U.S. military sub-unified command, part of U.S. Central Command. It is stationed in Iraq as agreed with the Government of Iraq under the U.S.–Iraq Status of Forces Agreement. USF-I replaced the previous commands Multi-National Force - Iraq, Multi-National Corps -...

 are mandated to withdraw from Iraqi territory by 31 December 2011 under the terms of a bilateral agreement signed in 2008.

Polling

Immediately before and after the 2003 invasion, most polls within the United States
American popular opinion on invasion of Iraq
The United States public's opinion of the invasion of Iraq has changed significantly since the years preceding the incursion. For various reasons, mostly related to the unexpected consequences of the invasion, as well as revelations of misinformation provided by US authorities, the US public’s...

 showed a substantial majority supporting war, though since December 2004 polls have consistently shown that a majority now thinks the invasion was a mistake. In the spring of 2007, surveys generally show a majority in favor of setting a timetable for withdrawal. However, in this area responses can vary widely with the exact wording of the question. Surveys find that most favor a gradual withdrawal over time to an immediate pullout.

2004 U.S. Presidential election

The issue was one on which John Kerry
John Kerry
John Forbes Kerry is the senior United States Senator from Massachusetts, the 10th most senior U.S. Senator and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He was the presidential nominee of the Democratic Party in the 2004 presidential election, but lost to former President George W...

 and George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....

 differed in the 2004 U.S. presidential election
United States presidential election, 2004
The United States presidential election of 2004 was the United States' 55th quadrennial presidential election. It was held on Tuesday, November 2, 2004. Republican Party candidate and incumbent President George W. Bush defeated Democratic Party candidate John Kerry, the then-junior U.S. Senator...

. Kerry said in August 2004 that he would make the withdrawal of all U.S. forces from Iraq a goal of his first presidential term. However, he did not offer a deadline or a timetable, and proposed an increase in deployment size in the immediate future. In the debate, he said that he reiterated that withdrawal was a goal, if an initial troop increase works.

In the debate, Bush did not offer any timetable or estimate of troops, either increasing or decreasing, but said only that the commanders of the troops in Iraq had the ability to ask for whatever force they needed. In general, this is consistent with his earlier remarks. When questioned about troop strength, Bush and then-Secretary of Defense
United States Secretary of Defense
The Secretary of Defense is the head and chief executive officer of the Department of Defense of the United States of America. This position corresponds to what is generally known as a Defense Minister in other countries...

 Donald Rumsfeld
Donald Rumsfeld
Donald Henry Rumsfeld is an American politician and businessman. Rumsfeld served as the 13th Secretary of Defense from 1975 to 1977 under President Gerald Ford, and as the 21st Secretary of Defense from 2001 to 2006 under President George W. Bush. He is both the youngest and the oldest person to...

 said that they were using the troops asked for by the general staff.

Congressional proposals and acts

On November 17, 2005, Representative John Murtha
John Murtha
John Patrick "Jack" Murtha, Jr. was an American politician from the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. Murtha, a Democrat, represented Pennsylvania's 12th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 1974 until his death in 2010....

 introduced , a resolution calling for U.S. forces in Iraq to be "redeployed at the earliest practicable date" to stand as a quick-reaction force in U.S. bases in neighboring countries such as Kuwait
Kuwait
The State of Kuwait is a sovereign Arab state situated in the north-east of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south at Khafji, and Iraq to the north at Basra. It lies on the north-western shore of the Persian Gulf. The name Kuwait is derived from the...

. In response, Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

s proposed a resolution that "the deployment of United States forces in Iraq be terminated immediately," without any provision for redeployment, which was voted down 403-3.

On June 16, 2006, the House voted 256-153 in a non-binding resolution
Non-binding resolution
A non-binding resolution is a written motion adopted by a deliberative body that cannot progress into a law. The substance of the resolution can be anything that can normally be proposed as a motion....

 against establishing a deadline for the withdrawal of troops from Iraq. Republican then-House Majority Leader
Party leaders of the United States House of Representatives
Party leaders of the United States House of Representatives are elected by their respective parties in a closed-door caucus by secret ballot and are also known as floor leaders. The U.S. House of Representatives does not officially use the term "Minority Leader", although the media frequently does...

 John Boehner
John Boehner
John Andrew Boehner is the 61st and current Speaker of the United States House of Representatives. A member of the Republican Party, he is the U.S. Representative from , serving since 1991...

, who argued against a deadline, stated "achieving victory is our only option", and "we must not shy away". On the other hand, Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

 then-House Minority Leader
Party leaders of the United States House of Representatives
Party leaders of the United States House of Representatives are elected by their respective parties in a closed-door caucus by secret ballot and are also known as floor leaders. The U.S. House of Representatives does not officially use the term "Minority Leader", although the media frequently does...

 and current Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi
Nancy Pelosi
Nancy Patricia D'Alesandro Pelosi is the Minority Leader of the United States House of Representatives and served as the 60th Speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 2007 to 2011...

 argued that a deadline is necessary, and stated "'stay the course' is not a strategy, it's a slogan", and "it's time to face the facts."

On March 27, 2007, Congress passed H.R. 1591, which called for the withdrawal of U.S. troops in Iraq by March 2008. However, President Bush vetoed the bill and the House of Representatives
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...

 failed to override the veto. Congress then passed H.R. 2206, which provided funding for the Iraq War through September 30, 2007 and was signed into law by President Bush on May 25, 2007. H.R. 2206 included eighteen benchmarks for the Iraqi government to meet
Iraq withdrawal benchmarks
The Iraq withdrawal benchmarks are a series of benchmarks the U.S. Government under the Bush administration have asked the Iraqi government to meet before the withdrawal of U.S...

.

On May 9, 2007, Representative Jim McGovern
Jim McGovern
James Patrick "Jim" McGovern is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1997. He is a member of the Democratic Party....

 introduced H.R. 2237 to the House
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...

: "To provide for the redeployment of United States Armed Forces and defense contractors from Iraq." The bill failed with a vote of 255 to 171, thirteen of the Nays coming from Democrats representing districts won by John Kerry in 2004.

On July 12, 2007 the House passed H.R. 2956 by a vote of 223 to 201, for redeployment (or withdrawal) of U.S. armed forces out of Iraq. The resolution requires most troops to withdraw from Iraq by April 1, 2008.

On July 18, 2007, after an all-night debate, the Senate blocked the passage of a bill that would have set a troop withdrawal timetable with a vote of 52-47. The withdrawal would have started within 120 days, and would have required that all troops (except an unspecified number could be left behind to conduct a very narrow set of missions) be out of the country by April 30, 2008.

McGovern-Polk proposal

Former U.S. Senator
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...

 George McGovern
George McGovern
George Stanley McGovern is an historian, author, and former U.S. Representative, U.S. Senator, and the Democratic Party nominee in the 1972 presidential election....

 and William R. Polk
William R. Polk
William Roe Polk is a veteran foreign policy consultant, author, and relation of president James K. Polk. He was born in Fort Worth, Texas and grew up on a ranch in west Texas. He attended public school in Fort Worth and the New Mexico Military Institute...

, director of the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...

 Center for Middle Eastern Studies, published a detailed proposal for U.S. withdrawal from Iraq in their book, Out of Iraq: A Practical Plan for Withdrawal Now. (Simon & Schuster, 2006. ISBN 1-4165-3456-3) A sizable excerpt was published in the October 2006 edition of Harper's magazine. Although their deadline for withdrawal has passed, their plan may serve as a useful blueprint for future withdrawal plans. Some of the basic features of their proposal include:
  • The first soldiers to be sent home should be private security contractors
    Private military company
    A private military company or provides military and security services. These combatants are commonly known as mercenaries, though modern-day PMCs refer to their staff as security contractors, private military contractors or private security contractors, and refer to themselves as private military...

    .
  • An international stabilization force of 15,000 soldiers to be established. Troops will be drawn from Morocco
    Morocco
    Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...

    , Tunisia
    Tunisia
    Tunisia , officially the Tunisian RepublicThe long name of Tunisia in other languages used in the country is: , is the northernmost country in Africa. It is a Maghreb country and is bordered by Algeria to the west, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Its area...

    , and Egypt
    Egypt
    Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...

    , funded by the U.S. This force would remain for two years after the departure of U.S. troops.
  • Transport, communications, and light arms equipment currently used by U.S. forces should be donated to the new multinational force.
  • In place of a new Iraqi army, a national reconstruction corps should be established, modeled on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
    United States Army Corps of Engineers
    The United States Army Corps of Engineers is a federal agency and a major Army command made up of some 38,000 civilian and military personnel, making it the world's largest public engineering, design and construction management agency...

    .
  • The immediate cessation of work on U.S. military bases.
  • U.S. withdrawal from the Green Zone
    Green Zone
    The Green Zone is the most common name for the International Zone of Baghdad. It is a area of central Baghdad, Iraq, that was the governmental center of the Coalition Provisional Authority and remains the center of the international presence in the city...

    .
  • Release of all prisoners of war
    Prisoner of war
    A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...

    .

ANSWER, NION, UFPJ positions

The three largest coalitions which organized demonstrations against the invasion of Iraq in 2003, United for Peace and Justice
United for Peace and Justice
United for Peace and Justice is a coalition of more than 1,300 international and U.S.-based organizations opposed to "our government's policy of permanent warfare and empire-building."...

 (UFPJ), Act Now to Stop War and End Racism (ANSWER), and Not in Our Name
Not in Our Name
Not in Our Name was a United States organization founded on March 23, 2002 to protest the U.S. government's course in the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks; it disbanded on March 31, 2008.-Two key documents:...

 (NION), have all called for the immediate withdrawal of all U.S. troops, "out now." The anti-war movement has debated whether to support existing proposals in Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....

.

The UFPJ legislative working group has endorsed Murtha
John Murtha
John Patrick "Jack" Murtha, Jr. was an American politician from the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. Murtha, a Democrat, represented Pennsylvania's 12th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 1974 until his death in 2010....

's redeployment proposal "because it is a powerful vehicle to begin the debate on the war," though the organization as a whole has not taken a position. ANSWER, on the other hand, has stated that "Murtha has not adopted an antiwar position. He wants to redeploy militarily to strengthen the hand of U.S. imperialism in the Middle East."

Burner Plan

The Burner Plan, formally entitled A Responsible Plan to End the War in Iraq
A Responsible Plan to End the War in Iraq
A Responsible Plan to End the War in Iraq is a 36-page plan created by a group of United States Democratic congressional candidates, retired military officers and national security professionals that outlines policy measures that the candidates pledged to support in the 2008 elections.The plan's...

, is a 36-page policy paper presented March 17, 2008 by Darcy Burner
Darcy Burner
Darcy Gibbons Burner is a Democrat from Carnation, Washington. She was a candidate for in 2006 and 2008, but lost to incumbent Dave Reichert in both elections. She worked for twelve years in high technology including five years at Microsoft as a Marketing Manager, working on .NET...

 and other 2008 Democratic congressional candidates, in cooperation with some retired national security officials. The plan outlined policy measures the candidates pledged to support in the United States presidential election, 2008
United States presidential election, 2008
The United States presidential election of 2008 was the 56th quadrennial presidential election. It was held on November 4, 2008. Democrat Barack Obama, then the junior United States Senator from Illinois, defeated Republican John McCain, the senior U.S. Senator from Arizona. Obama received 365...

.

2008 Iraq-U.S. bilateral agreement

All US Forces
United States Forces – Iraq
United States Forces - Iraq is a U.S. military sub-unified command, part of U.S. Central Command. It is stationed in Iraq as agreed with the Government of Iraq under the U.S.–Iraq Status of Forces Agreement. USF-I replaced the previous commands Multi-National Force - Iraq, Multi-National Corps -...

 are mandated to withdraw from Iraqi territory by 31 December 2011 under the terms of a bilateral agreement signed in 2008.

President Obama's speech on February 27, 2009

On February 27, 2009, at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune
Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune
Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune is a United States military training facility in North Carolina. The base's of beaches make it a major area for amphibious assault training, and its location between two deep-water ports allows for fast deployments.The main base is supplemented by five satellite...

 in North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...

, President Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...

 announced a deadline for the withdrawal of combat troops from Iraq. According to the president, by August 31, 2010, after nearly seven and a half years of United States military engagement in Iraq, all but a "transitional force" of 35,000 to 50,000 troops would be withdrawn from the Middle Eastern nation. Obama defined the task of the transitional force as "training, equipping, and advising Iraqi Security Forces
Iraqi Security Forces
The Iraqi Armed Forces are the military forces of the Government of Iraq. They consist of the Iraqi Army, the Iraqi Air Force, and the Iraqi Navy....

 as long as they remain non-sectarian; conducting targeted counter-terrorism missions; and protecting our ongoing civilian and military efforts within Iraq". Under this plan, the majority of troops will be withdrawn just a month after the deadline in the signed agreement between former President George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....

 and Prime Minister of Iraq
Prime Minister of Iraq
The Prime Minister of Iraq is Iraq's head of government. Prime Minister was originally an appointed office, subsidiary to the head of state, and the nominal leader of the Iraqi parliament. Under the newly adopted constitution the Prime Minister is to be the country's active executive authority...

 Nouri al-Maliki
Nouri al-Maliki
Nouri Kamil Mohammed Hasan al-Maliki , also known as Jawad al-Maliki or Abu Esraa, is the Prime Minister of Iraq and the secretary-general of the Islamic Dawa Party. Al-Maliki and his government succeeded the Iraqi Transitional Government. He is currently in his second term as Prime Minister...

 where the majority of troops will be withdrawn at one point, and the entirety of troops to be out by December 31, 2011.

August 2010 partial withdrawal

On August 19, 2010, the 4th Stryker Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division was the last US combat brigade to withdraw from Iraq. About 50,000 US troops will remain in the country in an advisory capacity. According to the US, they will help to train Iraqi forces in a new mission dubbed by the US as "Operation New Dawn," which will run until the end of 2011. The mission that ended August 19, 2010 was dubbed by the US as "Operation Iraqi Freedom," at a projected cost of more than $900 billion and 4,415 US troops killed in action. Over 100,000 Iraqi civilians were estimated to be killed, according to the Iraq Body Count website. Obama announced the end of Operation Iraqi Freedom in his Oval Office address on August 31, 2010.

Full withdrawal

With the collapse of the discussions about extending the stay of any U.S. troops, on October 21, 2011, Obama announced the full withdrawal of troops from Iraq as scheduled before. The U.S. will retain an embassy in Baghdad and 2 consulates with around 4,000 to 5,000 defense contractors.

See also

  • Kerry-Feingold Amendment
    Kerry-Feingold Amendment
    The Kerry and Feingold Amendment proposed the withdrawal of American Armed Forces from Iraq by July 2007 with the exception of a few to maintain security. The proposal was defeated in the United States Senate in a 86 to 13 vote.-Vote Summary:...

  • House Concurrent Resolution 63: Disapproval of troop surge
  • Opposition to the Iraq War
    Opposition to the Iraq War
    Significant opposition to the Iraq War occurred worldwide, both before and during the initial 2003 invasion of Iraq by the United States, United Kingdom, and smaller contingents from other nations, and throughout the subsequent occupation...

  • Iraq War De-Escalation Act of 2007
    Iraq War De-Escalation Act of 2007
    On January 30, 2007, then-U.S. Senator Barack Obama introduced the Iraq War De-Escalation Act of 2007 . The plan would have stopped the 2007 U.S. Troop Surge of 21,500 in Iraq, and would also have begun a phased redeployment of troops from Iraq with the goal of removing all combat forces by March...

  • Iraq withdrawal benchmarks
    Iraq withdrawal benchmarks
    The Iraq withdrawal benchmarks are a series of benchmarks the U.S. Government under the Bush administration have asked the Iraqi government to meet before the withdrawal of U.S...

  • Strategic reset
    Strategic reset
    Strategic reset is a policy framework designed to stop counterproductive U.S. engagement in a fragmenting Iraq and to strengthen the United States' stance throughout the Middle East. In military terms, "reset" refers to "a series of actions to restore units to a desired level of combat capability...


Further reading

  • Anthony Arnove
    Anthony Arnove
    Anthony Arnove is a freelance literary editor, agent and activist based in Brooklyn. He is on the board of directors of Haymarket Books, and is active in the National Writers Union and the International Socialist Organization.- Early life :...

    , Iraq: The Logic of Withdrawal. Haymarket Books
    Haymarket Books
    Haymarket Books is a non-profit left-wing book publisher and distributor. It is published by the Center for Economic Research and Social Change...

    , Chicago, 2006.
  • Malorie R. Medellin, "Iraq: Pull-out Rundown," Current (Winter 2007): 9.
  • George McGovern
    George McGovern
    George Stanley McGovern is an historian, author, and former U.S. Representative, U.S. Senator, and the Democratic Party nominee in the 1972 presidential election....

     and William Roe Polk, Out of Iraq: A Practical Plan for Withdrawal Now. Simon & Schuster
    Simon & Schuster
    Simon & Schuster, Inc., a division of CBS Corporation, is a publisher founded in New York City in 1924 by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. It is one of the four largest English-language publishers, alongside Random House, Penguin and HarperCollins...

    , New York, 2006.

External links

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