Saddam’s ouster will not necessarily lead to the same result, since Iraq lacks democratic traditions. Democracy doesn’t just consist of holding elections.
BRENT SCOWCROFTAfter the ’30s, we said, “no more Munichs.” And it got us in a lot of problems. Then we said, “No more Vietnams.” Now if we say, “No more Iraqs,” the next one won’t be an Iraq. It will be something different. You can’t learn lessons.
More Brent Scowcroft Quotes
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After all, we didn’t bring democracy to Germany in 1945; Hitler destroyed democracy there first.
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To sum up, the position we took was that since we didn’t know the internal situation in Iraq nor Saddam Hussein, that our best bet was to take counsel from the people who did know him and who did deal with him.
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I don’t think the Chinese look out at the world and want to overturn the system.
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America has never seen itself as a national state like all others, but rather as an experiment in human freedom and democracy.
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Russia right now is searching for its soul. It’s trying to figure out what it really is.
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The Iraqis need help establishing a government. We have to provide them with security.
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If you look back at the first Gulf war, the Arabs sent forces, they sent money. So their interests in Iraq are clear, but they’re nowhere to be seen now. Why? Because right now, it’s dangerous to be seen as supporting the United States.
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After the ’30s, we said, “no more Munichs.” And it got us in a lot of problems. Then we said, “No more Vietnams.” Now if we say, “No more Iraqs,” the next one won’t be an Iraq. It will be something different. You can’t learn lessons.
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It is beyond dispute that Saddam Hussein is a menace.
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Who is the guarantor, if there is one, of a more stable world? It’s the United States.
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Yes, Israel’s our ally. But, are the Palestinians our enemy? No, they are not.
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It’s not for nothing that the Iranians are known as rug merchants. They are.
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Democracy doesn’t just consist of holding elections.
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But, if you believe we should go around the world overturning regimes to make little United States, I don’t agree with that, because I don’t think we’re capable of doing that.
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I think America has to do more than be a broker now. Because both the Palestinians are weak and Israel is very weak.
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