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McCain: Americans Are Schizo on Iraq

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Sen. John McCain said the American people are showing a "schizophrenic" reaction to the prospect of a withdrawal of American forces from Iraq.

"They're frustrated, and they want us to get out,” the Arizona Republican said before a fund-raiser for Rep. Dan Lungren, R.-Calif.

"But if we ask the American people if we should set a certain date or a calendar, they agree with the president, and with me, and with Dan, that it is a recipe for disaster. We have to have conditions on the ground that indicate we can withdraw.

"Americans are really kind of schizophrenic about this issue.”

Calling the situation in Iraq "very, very tough," McCain warned that an early exit by the United States would have a far-reaching impact, the New York Sun reported.

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  "The consequences of failure are chaos, not just in Iraq, but in the entire region. There's a great deal at stake here, but I think that we can prevail.”

McCain said "serious mistakes" have been made in Iraq, but he remains convinced that the United States must advance democracy abroad.

"Of course, we don't want to see the House of Saud taken over by Islamic extremists and go the way of Iran with the fall of the Shah. But we also have to understand that, unless there is progress in Saudi Arabia, sooner or later they will fall."

Speaking on the eve of the fifth anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, McCain said he believes the U.S. is safer today, although not safe enough, according to the Sun.

"Most experts believed that there would be an additional attack on the United States of America. There hasn't been. That can't be all luck. I think a lot of that has to do with this president's policies, but particularly the men and women in the Department of Homeland Security and in our intelligence services, who have done a very good job."

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