Mission (Now) Accomplished
July 10, 2009
Michael Reagan
Eldest Son of President Ronald Reagan, New York Times Best-Selling Author
Michael Reagan, conservative commentator and the eldest son of President Ronald Reagan, recently wrote the follow column about the recent withdrawal of combat troops from Iraq.
Six years and two months after former President Bush stood under the infamous “Mission Accomplished” banner atop the U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln and announced the end of major combat operations in Iraq, United States combat troops have removed themselves from Iraq’s urban areas into more secure and remote bases of operations. It is from these posts where our brave men and women are now slated to conduct limited operations to keep major transportation avenues free from insurgent obstruction and to provide assistance to Iraqi security forces -- should it be requested by the Iraqis themselves. Gone are the days of major U.S. led combat operations that are not first approved and probably directed by Iraq’s leadership.
Most Americans can reasonably agree that President Bush’s May 1, 2003 declaration was premature and in error; however, what is getting lost in the always politicized debate over Iraq is the fact that the end of major combat operations is now actually upon us. While this monumental moment comes several years later than anticipated or promised by the Bush Administration, credit must be given to the former administration for its willingness to stay the course and find the military and political solutions necessary to reach this historic accomplishment. General Petraeus and the now-famous “surge” helped put our troops in a position to accomplish their mission with the numbers, equipment and strategy necessary to overcome a once-vibrant insurgency that had the support of much of Iraq’s Sunni populace.
But for the most part, this historic military and political milestone has gone unnoticed -- instead being overshadowed by the recent flurry of celebrity deaths, political scandals and the recent start of a major U.S. offensive in Afghanistan. Hiding under this cover are the naysayers -- those severe critics of the former administration’s inability to calm Iraq’s violence and political chaos after the announced cessation of U.S. combat operations. After years of public verbal flogging of former President Bush these critics are now silent -- unwilling to acknowledge that perhaps the former administration belatedly got it right.
While many of these critics have ample ammunition at their disposal to debate the merits of the original war strategy itself, none can doubt that the aim of neutralizing the insurgency, ensuring free and fair elections, and removing U.S. combat troops as the leading security provider has been reached.
Regardless of one’s view on the rationale for the war itself, we can all agree that our men and women of the armed forces and their counterparts in various other government agencies have served with distinction and done a remarkable job in turning some of the world’s most unstable and dangerous cities and provinces into a more unified nation that is now stable enough to govern and secure itself. Unfortunately, the cost has been high -- with over 4,000 American deaths and a stunning 30,000 plus wounded.
Those families who have lost loved ones and the men and women recuperating from their injuries can hopefully be comforted by the fact that their sacrifices have freed a nation from the evils of a dangerous tyrant and achieved the military and political gains necessary to remove our troops from the dangerous role as security lead.
The road ahead for Iraq will remain turbulent, as the pursuit of freedom so often is. The future of Iraq is now in its own hands -- a fate yearned for by millions of oppressed peoples across the globe. This is in sharp contrast to the many critics at home who want to continue to focus on banners and poorly-timed speeches of the past. Lost in this shuffle is a story of an infant democracy in the Middle East that continues to go largely unnoticed.
Michael Reagan is available to speak at your next event about politics, faith, conservatism or life with his father, Ronald Reagan. For more information, visit www.premierespeakers.com/michael_reagan.
Want Michael Reagan for your next event?
Find out more information, including fees and availability.
Find Out MoreKeep Reading
Michael Reagan relays values learned from his father
Michael Reagan
December 05, 2016
Through two brief moments of silence,Michael Reagan, son of the late U.S. President ...
Forgiving John Hinckley
Michael Reagan
August 01, 2016
A federal judge has ruled that John Hinckley Jr., the mentally disturbed man who tried to assassinate my ...
Michael Reagan | Lessons My Father Taught Me
Michael Reagan
May 11, 2016
Best Selling author and syndicated columnistMichael Reaganrecently made an important ...
Michael Reagan relays values learned from his father
Through two brief moments of silence,Michael Reagan, son of the late U.S. President Ronald Reagan and his first wife Jane Wyman, powerfully expressed both the need to be forgiven and to forgive as he opened his heart to Liberty University students in Convocation on Wednesday.
After sharing his story of being abused as a child by an after-sc...
Read More
Forgiving John Hinckley
A federal judge has ruled that John Hinckley Jr., the mentally disturbed man who tried to assassinate my father 35 years ago, will be set free in about a week.
Many people, including members of my own family, think it's a terrible injustice that Hinckley, now 61, will be allowed to leave the mental hospital and live permanently with his eld...
Read More
Michael Reagan | Lessons My Father Taught Me
Best Selling author and syndicated columnistMichael Reaganrecently made an important appearance on MSNBC's 'Morning Joe' for an emotive reflection on his father, former president Ronald Reagan. Michael reminisced on his childhood, shared stories about the dynamic between Ronald and Nancy and the toll Alzheimer's took on the whole family. Ronal...
Read More
Reagan at Normandy | Interview with Michael Reagan
It has been 71 years since the beaches of Normandy were taken by storm during the largest seaborne invasion in history on June 6th, 1944. This pivotal moment during WW2 is also known as Operation Overlord and termed "D-Day."; PresidentRonald Reaganwas the first sitting president to present at a D-Day memorial in Normandy. Reagan delivered a po...
Read More
Thank You -- To Those Who Saved The World
Here in this little French village of Sainte Mere Eglise they remember D-Day.Sainte Mere Eglise, as students of history and World War II movies know, became the first town to be liberated from Hitler's armies when hundreds of American paratroopers fell from the sky early on the morning of June 6, 1944.The people of Sainte Mere Eglise have never ...
Read More
Those Crazies Happen, No Matter What
You all know who he is.
But I'm not going to repeat the name of the 22-year-old crazy person who stabbed or shot six young people to death near the UC Santa Barbara campus last week.
I'm not going to quote from his insane 137-page "manifesto," either.
It just spews his pathetic reasons for why he planned his murderous retribution against all ...
Read More
Michael Reagan to Speak During Murrieta Campaign Event
On the 33rd anniversary of former U.S. President Ronald Reagan's inauguration, his son, Michael Reagan, will be speaking at an event in Murrieta.
Written by Maggie Avants
Reagan is scheduled to headline a Jan. 20 campaign event for state Assemblyman Brian Nestande in his bid for Congress, according to a news release. The fund-raising luncheon-...
Read More
Michael Reagan reflects on the JFK Assassination [VIDEO]
One person who vividly remembers the day J.F.K. died, is a man who's father would one day be president himself. Michael Reagan, son of Ronald Reagan, told CBS 13 he worried the same thing might happen to his dad. Including the day, it almost did"He would give it all to Secret Service because he trusted them,"; said Reagan.Political commentator ...
Read More
Michael Reagan: Idiots Against Guns get it wrong
The Idiots Against Guns in the media and Congress overdid it this time.
Not wanting to miss a chance to politicize a shooting tragedy, the anti-gun nuts went berserk Monday when news broke that a man had gone on a rampage at a D.C. naval base and killed 12 people.
Long before the facts were known or clear, The Washington Post, The New York Tim...
Read More
Michael Reagan visits crew for the USS Ronald Reagan
Michael Reagan recently had the privilege of joining the crew of the USS Ronald Reagan for the day. Michael was on-hand to meet the new crew members of the ship that carries his father's name. And, Michael continued the work of the Reagan Legacy Foundation which provides scholarships to the men and women stationed on the USS Reagan.
The Rea...
Read More