Reply #54: Actually abandoning the troops and veterans is a good idea for you?

[zulchzulu]

As for Obama's votes for the troops and veterans, he has done legislation:

"Our troops have performed brilliantly in Iraq, but no amount of American soldiers can solve the political differences at the heart of somebody else's civil war," Obama said. "That's why I have introduced a plan to not only stop the escalation of this war, but begin a phased redeployment that can pressure the Iraqis to finally reach a political settlement and reduce the violence."

-Barack Obama

http://obama.senate.gov/press/070130-obama_offers_pl_1/index.php

As for supporting the troops, here is what he said:

I am proud that I opposed this war from the start, because I thought that it would lead to the disastrous conditions that we've seen on the ground in Iraq. What I've also said is if we're going to send hundreds of thousands of our young men and women there, then they have the equipment that they need to make sure that they come home safely. I'm proud of the fact that I put forward a plan in January that mirrors what Congress ultimately adopted. And it says there's no military solution to this. We've got to have a political solution, begin a phased withdrawal, and make certain that we've got benchmarks in place so that the Iraqi people can make a determination about how they want to move forward.

-Barack Obama

Source: 2007 South Carolina Democratic primary debate, on MSNBC Apr 26, 2007
http://www.ontheissues.org/2007_Dem_primary_SC.htm