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CNN Live Sunday

How Is The War On Terror Going?

Aired December 28, 2003 - 18:06   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: Let's take a closer look at America's war on terror with one of CNN's military analysts. Retired Army Brigadier General David Grange joins us now from Madison, Wisconsin.
Good afternoon, general. Good to see you.

BRIG. GEN. DAVID GRANGE (RET.), U.S. ARMY: How are you doing?

LIN: Let me get your feedback first and foremost. I want to talk to you about the situation in Iraq, but let me get your feedback on this government drill and how the government responded and what it learned. Do you take comfort in the fact that Homeland Security has discovered its lack of preparedness? Or do you to feel that the government should have done more to begin with to be prepared and pass this drill?

GRANGE: Well, there's been several drills before this one. And exercises is the venue of where you find out the vulnerabilities that you have, either in the government or the military, whatever the case may be. I'm very grateful that they had the exercise. I think it's prudent. It just shows some of the issues in our armed forces about taking immunizations for anthrax, how prudent it is. And when you go to war, you don't have time to take action then, when you're under attack. So it's not only for the Armed Forces, but it's for the United States of America. And exercises are great venue for that.

LIN: Still overseas in Iraq, America is still at war on the ground as attacks continue to escalate against the U.S. coalition. Taking a look at the situation as it stands now, do you think that the United States needs to weigh what risks it's willing to take on the ground, what projects it's willing to continue in terms of rebuilding that country as these attacks escalate?

GRANGE: Well, the rebuilding has to take place regardless of the attacks. There's a counter-insurgency going on at the same time that nation building, this transition to a new form of government, free market economy, and rule of law takes place. So they have to take place simultaneously in order to have the effect of the desired results of what we want and what the people of Iraq, I believe, want.

LIN: There's a report in "The Washington Post" that basically suggests, according to their sources within the administration, that the United States is weighing how much work it really wants to do on the ground at this point and how much it wants to accelerate the process of simply having the Iraqis take over the security situation. It may even forego the possibility of elections and just expedite getting the troops out of there. GRANGE: Well, the thing is we're committed now. Once the attacks started, you have to finish the business that you are involved in in Iraq right now. So it's a long haul process. And the United States has to go the distance.

Whether we want to leave or not, it's irrelevant right now. We have to complete the mission. I would say that the United States will go and try get troops out if they can, but if the conditions are not right for the transition to Iraqi police, Iraqi security forces, Iraqi military, and some of the infrastructure development, then the United States has to stay.

LIN: Do you see the possibility, then, that political concerns as the president goes into this election year versus military concerns might actually clash? It is perhaps in the best interests of the political concerns of the administration that it have clean hands going into this election, while as I'm sure the men and women on the ground do want to finish the job as you are describing.

GRANGE: Well, you know, that's exactly right. There's going to be extreme pressure politically in reference to Iraq, in commitment to Iraq, and Afghanistan and elsewhere around in the world. But in particular, Iraq.

But as the president of the United States wears his other hat as commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces, it's more his responsibility to do what's right for this particular operation in Iraq, to finish it in a correct way, even though there's political pressure maybe to do otherwise.

LIN: So do you think it still would be the best decision to keep men and women on the ground, despite the increase in attacks? Would it not be wiser to pull out the forces regardless, hand over the structure to the Iraqis, let it be their problem if it meant saving more lives?

GRANGE: Well, in the long run, that's exactly what will happen. It will be turned over to the Iraqi forces as soon as they're capable of taking over those responsibilities. That's exactly what General Macarthur said in Japan. He said when the conditions are right to hand over the running of the government, the other business of the infrastructure of the country of Japan, then so be it. But until those conditions are met, then we'll have to stay, at least with some size of force until that's completed.

LIN: All right, thank you very much, General David Grange, for joining us this afternoon.

GRANGE: My pleasure.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired December 28, 2003 - 18:06   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: Let's take a closer look at America's war on terror with one of CNN's military analysts. Retired Army Brigadier General David Grange joins us now from Madison, Wisconsin.
Good afternoon, general. Good to see you.

BRIG. GEN. DAVID GRANGE (RET.), U.S. ARMY: How are you doing?

LIN: Let me get your feedback first and foremost. I want to talk to you about the situation in Iraq, but let me get your feedback on this government drill and how the government responded and what it learned. Do you take comfort in the fact that Homeland Security has discovered its lack of preparedness? Or do you to feel that the government should have done more to begin with to be prepared and pass this drill?

GRANGE: Well, there's been several drills before this one. And exercises is the venue of where you find out the vulnerabilities that you have, either in the government or the military, whatever the case may be. I'm very grateful that they had the exercise. I think it's prudent. It just shows some of the issues in our armed forces about taking immunizations for anthrax, how prudent it is. And when you go to war, you don't have time to take action then, when you're under attack. So it's not only for the Armed Forces, but it's for the United States of America. And exercises are great venue for that.

LIN: Still overseas in Iraq, America is still at war on the ground as attacks continue to escalate against the U.S. coalition. Taking a look at the situation as it stands now, do you think that the United States needs to weigh what risks it's willing to take on the ground, what projects it's willing to continue in terms of rebuilding that country as these attacks escalate?

GRANGE: Well, the rebuilding has to take place regardless of the attacks. There's a counter-insurgency going on at the same time that nation building, this transition to a new form of government, free market economy, and rule of law takes place. So they have to take place simultaneously in order to have the effect of the desired results of what we want and what the people of Iraq, I believe, want.

LIN: There's a report in "The Washington Post" that basically suggests, according to their sources within the administration, that the United States is weighing how much work it really wants to do on the ground at this point and how much it wants to accelerate the process of simply having the Iraqis take over the security situation. It may even forego the possibility of elections and just expedite getting the troops out of there. GRANGE: Well, the thing is we're committed now. Once the attacks started, you have to finish the business that you are involved in in Iraq right now. So it's a long haul process. And the United States has to go the distance.

Whether we want to leave or not, it's irrelevant right now. We have to complete the mission. I would say that the United States will go and try get troops out if they can, but if the conditions are not right for the transition to Iraqi police, Iraqi security forces, Iraqi military, and some of the infrastructure development, then the United States has to stay.

LIN: Do you see the possibility, then, that political concerns as the president goes into this election year versus military concerns might actually clash? It is perhaps in the best interests of the political concerns of the administration that it have clean hands going into this election, while as I'm sure the men and women on the ground do want to finish the job as you are describing.

GRANGE: Well, you know, that's exactly right. There's going to be extreme pressure politically in reference to Iraq, in commitment to Iraq, and Afghanistan and elsewhere around in the world. But in particular, Iraq.

But as the president of the United States wears his other hat as commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces, it's more his responsibility to do what's right for this particular operation in Iraq, to finish it in a correct way, even though there's political pressure maybe to do otherwise.

LIN: So do you think it still would be the best decision to keep men and women on the ground, despite the increase in attacks? Would it not be wiser to pull out the forces regardless, hand over the structure to the Iraqis, let it be their problem if it meant saving more lives?

GRANGE: Well, in the long run, that's exactly what will happen. It will be turned over to the Iraqi forces as soon as they're capable of taking over those responsibilities. That's exactly what General Macarthur said in Japan. He said when the conditions are right to hand over the running of the government, the other business of the infrastructure of the country of Japan, then so be it. But until those conditions are met, then we'll have to stay, at least with some size of force until that's completed.

LIN: All right, thank you very much, General David Grange, for joining us this afternoon.

GRANGE: My pleasure.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com