Bill Richardson: Musharraf must go

Source: Boston Globe

BILL RICHARDSON

Musharraf must go

By Bill Richardson
January 3, 2008

PRESIDENT PERVEZ MUSHARRAF of Pakistan must go.
Rather than waging the "unstinted" war against Al Qaeda
that he promised, he has become a source of instability
that terrorists are exploiting. Pakistan urgently needs
a new government, and the United States should suspend
all nonterrorism-related military aid until Musharraf
steps aside.

Some in Washington say we should stick with the dictator,
because they fear chaos might follow his departure. But
the risk of chaos is far greater if Musharraf remains.
Only a new government, with broader support than
Musharraf has, can restore order to Pakistan and
reengage an effective fight against Al Qaeda and the
Taliban.

Last week's murder of Benazir Bhutto and the rioting that
spread across the country, show that Musharraf cannot
maintain order. He could not provide security for Bhutto,
and he cannot provide security for Pakistan. His already
meager support is plummeting further. Under Musharraf's
rule, Al Qaeda has reconstituted itself with a Pakistani
face. The editor of one of Pakistan's largest newspapers
recently said that "Al Qaeda is now as much a Pakistani
phenomenon as it is an Arab or foreign element." The Bush
administration has given Musharraf over $10 billion in
military aid - but the Al Qaeda terrorists who attacked
us on Sept. 11, 2001, are now headquartered in Pakistan
and are stronger than ever.

Ironically, it is because of Musharraf's failure against
Islamism that some say we now must support him. They
claim, unconvincingly, that if it were not for Musharraf,
radical Islamists might win elections. This is nonsense:
Islamist parties have never gotten more than 12 percent
of the vote, and recent polls suggest that their current
support is even lower. If elections are held soon, polls
show that the majority of Pakistanis will vote for the
mainstream democratic parties.

-snip-

Read more: http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2008/01/03/musharraf_must_go

:thumbsup:

Bill Richardson:
www.2013IsTooLate.com
www.TheDifferenceOnIraq.com
www.richardsonforpresident.com

However, I don't think it is any of our business (1) whether Musharraf stays or goes; or (2) whether Pakistan postpones its election or not. I'm waiting for the Pakistanis to decide who our next President should be and whether we should postpone the Iowa caucuses. Let's take a few years off, mind our own business, fix some of our own problems, and see if we are any worse off for it.

He could entertain her with stories of his fabulous baseball career and tales of the Far East.