5 Year plan

I was watching Meet the Press this past Sunday. Wesley Clark was the guest. This exchange, on an national media outlet mind you, took me back.

Here is an excerpt:
MR. RUSSERT: In your book, �Winning Modern Wars,� you write on page 130, the following: �As I went back through the Pentagon���November 2001, one of the senior military staff officers had time for a chat. Yes, we were still on track for going against Iraq, he said. But there was more. This was being discussed� in �part of a five-year campaign plan, he said, and there were a total of seven countries,
beginning with Iraq, then Syria, Lebanon, Libya, Iran, Somalia���Sudan. So, I thought, this is what they� meant �when they talk about �draining the swamp.��
MR. RUSSERT: "Do you believe there�s a five-year plan, to invade seven countries?"
GEN. CLARK: "Well, I think this was being discussed at the time, just as that man told me, as part of a five-year plan. This administration made a fundamental choice early in the war on terror to go after states rather than to go after terrorists. They wanted to use the conventional power of the United States armed forces to take down states. And Don Rumsfeld�s still talking about it, as though these old states are central to the problem of terrorism. The problem with that is they aren�t, and when you take them down, you�re left trying to pick up the pieces, as has happened in Iraq. Attacking Iraq has done almost nothing to help us deal with the problem of al-Qaeda. In fact, if you had asked Osama bin Laden, what would he like us to do to sort of play into his hands, he would have said, �Well, why don�t you have the United States invade an Arab country?� He would have preferred we invade Saudi Arabia. Of course, that would have really mobilized opinion, but if you can�t do that, Iraq�s a pretty close second. He is using�and his organization is using�our presence in Iraq as a focal point. President Bush has said it�s the centerpiece for the war on terror. It isn�t. It�s a sideshow. It�s simply their easiest means of access to attack American soldiers. That�s all it is."

---------------------------------------------------------------
I know WE talk about this all the time.. but WE are all a little paranoid and whatnot. What is everyone's opinion about this being broadcast on such a widely watched platform. Maybe getting us ready?

Then you see this regarding the U.S. fighting foreign troops in Iraq who were heading into Syria.
Opinions, thoughts?

In the Pentagon, several varied war plans are discussed and planned for, even if they aren't intended to happen. That's what they do...that's their job, to plan for war scenarios. Clark is simply drawing a parallel to what he saw happen with Iraq, and one of any number of contingent war scenarios... He's playing it up, to build up the idea of Bush & Co's war-mongering, to build himself up as the candidate to oppose it...

In case you haven't looked into it much....Clark's background seems to be one of a bootlicking yes-man, and more of a political general, than a hard ass...