McCain in 2000, Bush runs in 2008?

I don't think a larger force would make the insurgency impossible. First of, the US is unpopular among certain groups in the Middle East. Some hated it so much they took a airplane and flew it into large buildings. Second, a larger army would make more targets.

A small occupation worked reasonably well in Afganistan after all.

Why are many of us assuming McCain would invade Iraq?

Not all Republicans come identical out of a box, you know.

I know Ron Paul. I read Ron Pauls homepage. And McCain is no Ron Paul. :D
 
Of course, no Republican would have been disingenuous enough to blame Bush's blunders on Clinton, even into the last year of Bush's second term.

Only those things that have a clear link to either the Clinton administration's decisions or their time in office. The stock market bubble happened during his time in office, so the subsequent crash gets tied to him, even though presidents have very little to do with the economy.
 
I would reconsider using the words "occupation," "Afghanistan," and "reasonably well" in the same sentence. That place is going downhill fast.

Its because of Iraq. Many say that insurgents took the ideas of IEDs and other tactics to gain a foothold by actually attacking them. Also the troop decrease and loss of focus also contributed.
 
I think that Jeb Bush would have been a likely choice in 2008. He the one who was everyone thought would be president.

It does make an interesting scenario? I would be curious to know what the 8 eight years under a McCain presidency looked like as well

We would have been done in Afghanistan by now.
 
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