Romney supports Bush's troop increase for now
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa -- Republican presidential contender Mitt Romney warned Wednesday that the consequences of pulling U.S. troops out of Iraq too soon could be catastrophic, but he also said his support for increased troop levels may not be open-ended.
"As long as there's a reasonable probability of success with the surge, that's the right course to follow," Romney, the former Massachusetts governor, said in an interview with USA TODAY. "If there's not a reasonable probability of success, then you'd have to consider other options."
Romney spent the day crisscrossing eastern Iowa as he hopes for a boost from a statewide straw poll Saturday. At nearly every stop, he faced questions about the war. Romney answered those questions by saying that he supports the administration's plans "at this stage" and said a pullout could lead to a "regional conflagration."
In the interview, he compared the calculations that should be made after Gen. David Petraeus delivers a key report next month to "three-dimensional chess" in which each move depends on several other forces.
Romney would clearly prefer to talk about other things, including his support of lower taxes and his hard line on immigration. In recent days, he has been calling on the federal government to deny some funding for "sanctuary cities" that decline to aggressively enforce immigration laws. He said New York was "the poster child for sanctuary cities" when rival Rudy Giuliani was mayor, a designation Giuliani dismissed as inaccurate.
On Iraq, Romney and the other Republican presidential candidates face perilous balancing acts. The major contenders — Giuliani, former Tennessee senator Fred Thompson and Arizona Sen. John McCain— all support the increased troop levels. However, they generally sidestep questions about what should happen if, for example, the Iraqi government continues to fail to meet benchmarks for political progress. Romney acknowledges difficulties ahead.
In the interview, for instance, he noted that Pentagon officials have raised questions about whether it is possible for the U.S. military to maintain current force levels past next spring. And he was caustic about the war's "mismanagement" over the past three years that has led to today's dilemmas.
"I am not going to shy away from the fact that much of this may not have been necessary had we gone in with a much higher level of troop strength and had we been properly prepared," he said. "It is conceivable that we would have been long gone and the nation would have had a degree of stability."
At community meetings that the campaign dubs "Ask Mitt Anything," Romney in his standard opening remarks limits his comments on Iraq to an appeal for a "surge" of support for U.S. troops and their families.
On Wednesday, more fundamental questions about the war were raised at nearly every question-and-answer sessions that followed, however — some from voters who favor staying the course, others who want a change.
Over a breakfast in Bettendorf, Rachel Griffiths, 41, an anti-war activist from nearby Milan, Ill., asked how many of Romney's five sons are serving in the military.
"The good news is, we have a volunteer Army and that's the way we're going to keep it," Romney replied. "My sons are adults. They've chosen not to serve in the military in active duty and I respect their decision in that regard … and one of the ways my sons are showing support for our nation is helping me get elected because they think I'd be a great president."
Over a lunch in Coralville, Gary Kellogg, 68, whose son is deployed in Iraq, asked for Romney's "exit plan" for U.S. troops. Romney discussed the potential consequences of pulling out precipitously.
Kellogg, a Republican and Romney supporter, said he thinks it's time for U.S. forces to turn it over to the Iraqi government. "Four-plus years, I think, is sufficient," he said.