Obama campaign defends Iraq strategy

The Obama campaign hosted a conference call today with Sen. Joe Biden (D-Del.) and Senior Foreign Policy Adviser Susan Rice to discuss Sen. Barack Obama’s (D-Ill.) opinion piece in The New York Times today, in which he outlines his strategic plan for success in Iraq.

Biden stated that Obama’s plan for Iraq is far more in line with the needs and desires of the military. This was echoed by Rice, who stated that currently our forces are overstretched and our existing military installments in the region are unsustainable. Rice went on to say that McCain’s plan calls for Korea-style bases in Iraq that would remain in the nation for an indefinite amount of time.

Biden concluded by stating that he believes there are large terrorist networks requiring the attention of the US residing in both Afghanistan and Pakistan, but not Iraq. As such, withdrawing from Iraq would be extremely important for ensuring that the United States is successful in stopping terrorist threats.

Rice also stated that, contrary to statements from the McCain campaign, Sen. Obama has remained consistent on his strategy for Iraq.