The White House, President George W. Bush Click to print this document

For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
July 10, 2007

Iraq Fact Check: Responding to Key Myths

     Fact sheet In Focus: Iraq
     Fact sheet Setting the Record Straight

1.  MYTH: The war “is lost.”

2.  MYTH: U.S. troops in Iraq are not fighting al Qaeda terrorists, just policing a Shiite vs. Sunni “civil war.”

3.  MYTH: The U.S. is playing “whack-a-mole” in Iraq.

4.  MYTH:  The U.S. has an indefinite commitment in Iraq and should shift to training Iraqi troops.

5.  MYTH: Setting a timeline and pulling troops out of Iraq regardless of conditions on the ground would be a responsible end to the conflict and/or would put needed pressure on Iraq’s government.

6.  MYTH:  Gen. Petraeus does not believe the U.S. military can make a difference in Iraq.

7.  MYTH: U.S. troops are “arming” Sunni insurgents in Iraq.

8.  MYTH: Timelines and dates for withdrawal are consistent with the views of outsiders like the Baker-Hamilton Iraq Study Group.

9.  MYTH: Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki is an agent of Iran and/or Muqtada al Sadr.

10.  MYTH: U.S. troops are sent to Iraq without proper training, equipment, or rest.

11.  MYTH: Iraqis are going on a two-month holiday and are not defending their own country.

12.  MYTH: Iraq’s Parliament passed a resolution calling for U.S. forces to leave.

13.  MYTH: The U.S. is in Iraq only because of Congress’s 2002 resolution authorizing the invasion to topple Saddam Hussein’s regime.

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