Presidential candidate and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Tuesday reiterated that she “made a mistake” when she voted to authorize the invasion of Iraq as a senator in 2002.
After an event in Iowa on Tuesday, Clinton was asked whether the world is better off without Saddam Hussein in power.
“I know that there have been a lot of questions about Iraq posed to candidates over the last weeks. I’ve made it very clear that I made a mistake, plain and simple, and I have written about it in my book. I’ve talked about it in the past,” Clinton told reporters.
She added that Iraq is largely responsible for the current situation in the country.
“What we now see is a different and very dangerous situation. The United States is doing what it can, but ultimately this has to be a struggle that the Iraqi government and the Iraqi people are determined to win for themselves and we can provide support, but they’re going to have to do it,” she said.
Last week, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush’s (R) difficulty answering whether he would have authorized the Iraq invasion, given what he knows now, prompted other 2016 hopefuls to address the question.
When he was first asked, Bush said he would have gone into Iraq. He quickly backtracked and said he misheard the question. Finally, Bush said on Thursday that he “would not have gone into Iraq.”
Absolutely correct about Iraqis having to take responsibility. Most Americans wanted out of Iraq and don’t wanna send a buttload of troops back.