Via the Drudge Report and the Sunday Mail:

SECRET PLAN TO QUIT IRAQ
Sat Jul 09 2005 19:16:16 ET

BRITAIN and America are secretly preparing to withdraw most of their troops from Iraq - despite warnings of the grave consequences for the region, the SUNDAY MAIL in UK is reporting.

A secret paper written by UK Defence Secretary John Reid for Tony Blair reveals that many of the 8,500 British troops in Iraq are set to be brought home within three months, with most of the rest returning six months later.

The leaked document, marked Secret: UK Eyes Only, appears to fly in the face of Mr Blair and President Bush’s pledges that Allied forces will not quit until Iraq’s own forces are strong enough to take control of security.

If British troops pull out, other members of the Alliance are likely to follow. The memo says other international forces in Southern Iraq currently under British control will have to be handled carefully if Britain withdraws. It says they will not feel safe and may also leave.

Embarrassingly, the document says the Americans are split over the plan - and it suggests one of the reasons for getting British troops out is to save money. Mr Reid says cutting UK troop numbers to 3,000 by the middle of next year will save GBP 500million a year, though it will be 18 months before the cash comes through.

The document, Options For Future UK Force Posture In Iraq, is the first conclusive proof that preparations for a major withdrawal from Iraq are well advanced.

The British Government’s public position is that UK troops will stay until newly trained Iraqi forces are ready to take control of security. Less than a fortnight ago, Mr Blair said it was ‘vital’ the US-led coalition stayed until Iraq stabilised, and Mr Bush endorsed his comments.

Mr Reid’s memo, prepared for Mr Blair in the past few weeks, shows that in reality, plans to get them out - ‘military drawdown,’ as he puts it - are well advanced.

It says: ‘We have a commitment to hand over to Iraqi control in Al Muthanna and Maysan provinces two of the four provinces under British control in Southern Iraq in October 2005 and in the other two, Dhi Qar and Basra, in April 2006.

Developing…

If the British abandon two provinces in southern Iraq within the three months it would be a disaster. Not because these areas will descend into anarchy, but because US troops will have to fill the void. This will place further strain upon our troops doing the fighting in the north. We already gave the British the “soft zone” in the Shia dominated south, what more do they want, biscuits and tea? This doesn’t seem to have anything to do with the bombings in London, but it will nevertheless be perceived that way across the Middle East. We’ll see if this comes to pass, but right now this doesn’t look promising.

A new poll taken after the bombings show the terrorists failed. I am sure all the Kossacks are going to be mad, but support for Blair, the United States, and for Iraq have INCREASED after the attacks. I figured they would, but all the Kossacks (surprise, surprise) were predicting a “withdrawal” movement (aka: The Spanish repsonse).

I think the most interesting statistic revoled around the view of Islam in Britain.

Do you feel that Islam - as distinct from Islamic fundamentalist groups - poses a threat to Western liberal democracy?
Response 7/7/05(January 05)
Yes, Islam poses a major threat 19(10)
Yes, poses some threat 27(22)
No, not much threat 24(33)
No, no threat at all 23(30)
Don’t know 7(5)

Fully 46% of the British populous believes Islam poses a threat of some sort to Western society as opposed to 47% who do not. This is a jump from 32% who thought so in January as opposed to 63% who did not. We’ll see how these numbers play out but a very interesting dynamic

H/T: National Review’s Corner

H/T: Joe Biles
Steve Damion, State Chair of the New Jersey CRs resigned over corruption charges and surprise, surprise it involves fundraising letters and embezlement. No wonder he was a Gourley supporter.

The NJCRs released the following message this morning:

The Unified College Republicans:
The undersigned have decided to write you this letter to inform the College Republican chapter leaders of the problems that have arisen within the New Jersey College Republicans organization (NJCRs hereafter).
Unfortunately, those schools that have decided to enlist in this crusade of sorts have seen that our new Chairman, Steven Damion, is lacking the utmost important trait of a leader: integrity. In the past several weeks Damion has single-handedly divided the Executive Board of the NJCRs, disenfranchised schools within the state, used his position for personal and financial gain and provided the entire country with a poor opinion of the NJCRs as a whole.

We have taken it upon ourselves take action on this subject. It is the opinion of the undersigned that this is the only viable solution which would lead to a smooth transition in what is such an integral year for the Republican Party in New Jersey. The charges as uncovered thus far are as follows:

I. Embezzlement
Used hundreds of dollars from the College Republican account for personal use
1. Paid for trip to Florida(to retrieve an engagement ring) from College Republican account
2. Paid roundtrip airfare for his fiance to the CRNC last month (she was not a delegate and not on official business)

Has impeded the state treasurer from the execution of his duties
1. Switched banks to cover up any potential audits in the future
2. Made the College Republican account inaccessible to the state treasurer, Joe McCarthy

II. Extortion
Demanded a donation of thousands of dollars from the Forrester campaign for information requested by the them
Intentionally sent donation letters referencing the Forrester campaign without the approval of the campaign.
I would like to remind the leaders of this organization that the above are all impeachable offences. As you will see in the attached documents. As the NJGOP Chairman Tom Wilson put it: “… you [Damion] have invited a level of scrutiny for the CR’s that has not previously existed.” He has discredited the College Republicans and it is reflected on the organization as a whole.

This morning, Steven Damion tendered his resignation as Chairman of NJCRs this morning. Let us take this time to put this behind us and focus on the future.

Sincerely,

Garrett A. Brooks, Executive Director/Acting Chairman
Cassandra Cavanaugh, Vice Chairman
Joseph McCarthy, Treasurer
Greg Walker, Secretary