Pelosi in NY Nixes Boots on the Ground

By MARCO POGGIO

U.S. Rep. Nancy Pelosi said Tuesday the United States should not deploy combat troops in the fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, a choice that would contradict the plan espoused as a possiblity by Joint Chiefs chairman Martin Dempsey.

During a lecture at New York Law School, Pelosi (D-CA) expressed her support for Obama on several policies, including his proposal last week for a “broad coalition” to defeat the extremist group, while blaming the Bush administration for the invasion of Iraq in 2003, which she called “one of the most serious mistakes our country has ever made.”

The former Speaker of the House and now Minority Leader said she supported the president’s announced airstrike campaign but added she would vote against sending combat troops on the ground, a possibility the Pentagon leadership raised in front of a Senate panel on Tuesday.

“We cannot go down that path. There’s no evidence that it would even work,” Pelosi said, highlighting the president and Vice President Joe Biden’s diplomatic efforts in creating a new and more inclusive government in Baghdad that could help solve the crisis from inside.

Pelosi said she believed the House will give the president free run 6 femmes the authorization to train and arm moderate Syrian opposition in a vote scheduled for Wednesday.

In her rare appearance in New York City, Pelosi also touched upon several other issues.

She said she wished the president would take executive action to change U.S. immigration policy without waiting until the midterm elections in November.

“I said: I would rather pass the immigration reform and lose the elections,” Pelosi said, disagreeing with Obama’s decision, emphasizing how an overhaul on immigration is important “for how transformative it would be for our country” and stressing that the 11 million people who  need to be legalized are more urgent than winning the ballots.

Pelosi expressed  frustration against the Republicans in Congress for, in her view, jeopardizing reforms and failing to respond to the public opinion on many sensitive issues such as abortion, affordable health care and LGBT policies.

She then repeated her determination in ridding politics of the influence of money.

“It’s really important to do everything in our power to reduce the role of money in politics,” she said, explaining how the flow of capitals towards political parties is luring the middle class and is a danger to democracy.

“I guarantee you this,” Pelosi said, “If we increase the level of civility in politics we will increase the number of women in politics; not only women, but younger people, minorities and the rest of the beautiful diversity of America.”