U.S. ' In for a Shock'

[Quixote1818]

U.S. 'in for a shock'
In early election results, Shiite cleric's alliance trouncing Washington's favorite
Borzou Daragahi, Chronicle Foreign Service

Friday, February 4, 2005



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Baghdad -- Partial results from Sunday's election suggest that U.S.-backed Prime Minister Ayad Allawi's coalition is being roundly defeated by a list with the backing of Iraq's senior Shiite cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al- Sistani, diminishing Allawi's chances of retaining his post in the next government.

Sharif Ali bin Hussein, head of the Constitutional Monarchy Party, likened the vote outcome to a "Sistani tsunami" that would shake the nation.

"Americans are in for a shock," he said, adding that one day they would realize, "We've got 150,000 troops here protecting a country that's extremely friendly to Iran, and training their troops."

The partial totals so far show the Iraqi List headed by Allawi, a secular Shiite and onetime CIA protege, trailed far behind with only 18 percent of the votes, despite an aggressive television ad campaign waged with U.S. aid. A lopsided majority of votes, 72 percent, went to the United Iraqi Alliance list, topped by a Shiite cleric who lived in Iran for many years and whose Sciri party has close ties to Iran's clerical regime. More than a third of the alliance's vote came from Baghdad, the cosmopolitan capital where Allawi had been expected to fare well.

Continuted at:

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2005/02/04/MNGSMB5MDT1.DTL

[Not_Giving_Up]

1. Can't you see??

They will say that Iran influenced the Iraqi elections, and we must put them down next.

This will really show the whole world that * didn't want the people of Iraq to choose their own government, he wanted them to choose HIS choice.

[tuvor]

3. Stop giving bush ideas. n/t

[Not_Giving_Up]

26. I don't think I am

Hell, maybe they planned it to turn out that way, just for that reason.

[lala_rawraw]

27. No, that would not make sense....

Because we would have to go into Iran alone... and right now, we have no military, no money, and no friends. If this is their move, then it is a big mistake and perhaps will be the impeachment needed for their entire party. However, I still think it is more like payback from Putin with love.

[NYC]

2. Allawi is being defeated?

(Are we in for a recount?)

[mitchtv]

7. I'll believe that when I see it

not over yet. A republican arranged election in an occupoed country? why would I be suspicious?

[burythehatchet]

10. I hear Dino Rossi is filing a challenge there too.

[ogradda]

4. who'd have imagined they'd want their own damn government

and not ours?:eyes:

[jimshoes]

5. How long before chim chim

backtracks on the successful Iraq vote rhetoric?

[queeg]

6. Faux news says Alawi is winning

[mitchtv]

9. THAT'S RICH !

lol

[burythehatchet]

12. Don't change that channel

[w13rd0]

13. Are you kidding?

Wow, Fox has gone beyond thingly veiled WH mouthpiece to fullfill the role of that Baghdad guy for Bush. "No, absolutely not, Allawi is CRUSHING his competition. Pay no attention to that man being sworn in. Allawi is on the move, and he's excited."

[Quixote1818]

14. If he isn't then he soon will be. We have all seen this before.

[Divine Discontent]

23. I haven't seen that in their internet reporting

they say huge lead for shiites... now what the talking azzes are saying on the boob-tube, that's a diff thing..

[DELUSIONAL]

8. And what does this make the GOPigs waving their purple fingers

at the SOTU speech bushie just gave??

Or is the vote being hacked as we discuss the Iraqi vote??

The Iraqi "vote" --

Mission accomplished --- <NOT>

1001th bushie reason for the invasion of Iraq -- to close down Saddam's torture/rape rooms.

[Quixote1818]

11. Iraq in a nut shell:

So let me get this straight, we have spent 200 Billion dollars, killed 100,000 Iraq citizens, lost almost 1,500 American lives not to mention over 10,000 wounded, blown up Iraq's infrastructure, lost 8 billion dolors in Oil money only to see Iraq being run by the Muslim equivalent of Pat Robertson? Now we are training soldiers who may in the future be against us and with Iran not to mention Iraq is becoming a breeding ground for more terrorists while all along their were NO weapons of mass destruction found?

Talk about probably the biggest tragic blunder in US Presidential history! God help us!

[MeDeMax]

19. you mean...

<...> only to see Iraq being run by the Muslim equivalent of American Pat Robertson?


nice summation and you are dead on.

[asjr]

20. Please. Send just exactly what you have written as a LTTE to

one of the major newspapers. WaPo or NYT. You have really nailed it.

[Quixote1818]

22. Thanks I will.

[pretzel4gore]

25. but it bought bush time.....

and notice he was able to steal the election, thanks to the time iraq bought him, that is on top of the time 911 bought.....the longer it goes on, the deeper the busheviks are getting stuck, and the more people are getting stuck with them....the more frantic their efforts are going to be

[demodonkey]

15. How much ya' wanna bet Allawi suddenly "surges ahead"?

Bet we soon hear that the early returns are as "flawed" as US exit polls...

[MeDeMax]

18. my 1st political humor...

hope you enjoy it:

<http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x1570542#1570657>

[NYC]

24. I especially like this sentence:

"It was determined earlier on that eraqis would feel empowered if the machines showed high turnout even before they cast their first ballots."

[dogman]

16. Probably adjusting the absentee ballots now.

The Iraqi woman at the SOTU is worth a lot of votes here, why not there?

[Mojambo]

17. Can someone please tell me why they thought

an aggressive television ad campaign would be particularly effective when huge sections of Iraq don't even have electricity?

[Quixote1818]

21. For the same reason Bush wants to change Social Security.

Don't try to comprehend their brilliance. Us small minded people can never reach their powerful intellect, depth and abstract reasoning. It's beyond our ability's. Just follow Bush blindly and everything will be fine.

[Bark Bark Bark]

28. Guess We'll Have To Keep Bombin'--Uh, Liberatin'--'Em...

...until they learn to vote the way they're suppos'ta.

Only then will they be truly free.

[Igel]

29. Constitutional Monarchy party would be opposed to

Shi'ite rule. I'm not altogether sure that the majority of the Shi'a are pro-Iranian. They're Arab, and the ethnic divisions are perceptible even within Shi'ism.

In other words, he has an agenda.

On the other hand, the Shi'a know that democracy is majority rule. Let's see if they realize that functioning democracies aren't majoritarian. Al-Sistani's said things that strongly imply he knows that Americans don't think good democracies are majoritarian, but that's no guarantee he really believes it.

And Sadr seems to believe the opposite: that democracies are majoritarian.