General Wesley Clark Rallies Democratic Support
Wednesday, August 31, 2005
By Erin Leach
KIMT

MASON CITY, Iowa -- General Wesley Clark, who was a candidate for the democratic presidential nomination last year, made a stop in our area today.

He’s here to rally support for democrats for the 2006 election and to hear about your concerns, namely the war in Iraq.

General Clark tells KIMT NewsChannel 3, "It was a war that didn't have to be fought, it was a strategic blunder, it was poorly executed, poorly designed and right now, after two years, we still don't have a winning strategy."

But he does have a plan in mind and it doesn’t include pulling out our troops.
He says, "It'll be viewed around the world as a huge American defeat, it'll incite terrorist recruiting."

But his plan includes rethinking our strategy.

"We need to get an Iraqi government formed that can kind of hold itself together with enough military that we've trained to give them a chance of survival and then we need to get with the neighbors in the region and try to put a regulated umbrella around Iraq," he says.

General Clark spoke for almost an hour about the problems in Iraq, but when it came to talking about seeking a presidential nomination in 2008, he was a bit more tight lipped.
He says, "No, I haven't given it any thought, I haven't ruled anything out."

But a life of public service could be in the cards.

"I've always loved public service and being up here and talking about these issues, trying to help candidates and a party."

And that's all he says today's visit is about, helping his party.

During General Clark’s campaign last year, he skipped Iowa during the caucuses to focus on New Hampshire.

When asked if that was a mistake, he declined to comment directly.