Jerry Brito

Bush’s Cuban commission

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The New York Times today reports about a State Department commission set up over a year ago to study how to implement a transition after Saddam Hussein’s rule ended. The group was made up of Iraqi and American lawyers, economists, engineers, and other professionals and sought to produce a manual of what to do “the day after”–from water supplies and sewage, to a criminal code and economic reforms.

The report apparently predicted the looting that took place right after Saddam was toppled, which caught the U.S. military off-guard. It also recommended against firing most of the Iraqi military, like Jerry Bremer did only to later find it was a mistake. (Check out this great Frontline report that takes a look at the State Department commission, among other things.)

Critics often say that the administration never planned for the war’s aftermath and ensuing occupation. The truth seems to be that the State Department did, but the Pentagon (who was ultimately in charge during and immediately after the war) chose to ignore the planning.

That said, President Bush announced last week the formation of “a commission for the assistance to a free Cuba to plan for the happy day when Castro’s regime is no more and democracy comes to the island.” The commission will be chaired by Colin Powell and Mel Martinez and will “draw upon experts within our government to plan for Cuba’s transition from Stalinist rule to a free and open society, to identify ways to hasten the arrival of that day.” Bush said, “The transition to freedom will present many challenges to the Cuban people and to America, and we will be prepared.”

Cheeky monkey Jeff Kiley, and deadly serious Jesse Jackson have both predicted invasions of Cuba to shore up the Florida vote and deflect attention from Iraq. I’m not sure Bush would go that far. But if he does, I cringe at the thought of a Cuban Coalition Provisional Authority with Mel Martinez or Otto Reich as “administrator”.

Oct 19, 2003 | Comments