A plan.

Relax the restrictions on the troops so they can do their job.  War us messy, let it be messy.  At the same time, give over a few areas to the Iraq's to test their determination and if they do not respond positively and successfully, start pulling back.  Give them a few more opportunities and if they fail pull back more.  Move out and towards the borders but only after making deals with Syria, Jordan, and Iran to make sure they do not see this as aggression.  If it does not improve, continue pulling out.  Iran may take over but we have already give Iraq to them anyway.

What's your plan for Afghanistan?

Tough one.  Probably give up on our puppet oil executive president and start pandering a bit to the warlords.  Some side deals on the Taliban might be helpful.  Iran hates the Taliban so maybe some side deals there as well.

What's your plan for Iran?

Quit playing to the two bit dictators and start dealing with the big players.  China is spending your and my dollars to buy oil from Iran.  Hundreds of billions of dollars worth.  China still finds the US useful for their growth so make some side deals with China.  They can twist the arm of Iran's leadership which might prove more successful that to continue to play into Iran's president's play-book by acting like dumb children.  Unleash and unfetter Secretary Paulson.  He is the consummate deal maker.  If he can't do it, get rid of him.

What's your plan for N. Korea?

Keep the pressure on China.  Quit addressing the North Koreans and deal at the level appropriate for a superpower rather than play schoolyard games with the bullies.

What's your plan for Al Qaeda?

Quit letting them win.  Try to re-cultivate relations with our old friends in Europe to apply greater pressure on the immigration front in Europe.  Spend some of the money for the war in Iraq on security of our borders and intelligence effort.  400 billion should go some good towards better security.  Isolation of Al Qaeda, internal security, and world-wide intelligence is the best bet.  Shooting at them is playing into their hands.

What's your plan for the borders?

Close them up.  Then start legal methods for bringing in workers.  To do this, relations with Mexico needs work.  We should not be sucking up to the Mexican government.  Instead we should be making deals on oil, technology, and new trade deals with some levers on Mexico's border.  

What's your plan for detainees?

Try them and either prosecute or release.  What we are doing is shortsighted and looks bad.  Quit playing bully and clean it up.

What's your plan for domestic surveillance?

Do it legally.  If more is needed, change the laws.

What's your plan the next time we get attacked?

Try to hold the financial markets together with a plan for international intervention to prevent a financial meltdown.  We did ok last time and we should be able to do better this time.

Start now to complete the measures to support local police and fire and accelerate the integration of communication and planning.  Do this rather than just spend money on re-organizing the federal bureaucracies.  Again, that 400 billion could probably be put to good use in the US.

What's your plan for energy dependency?

Quit pandering to big oil and the Ag lobbies.  Look to other sources of ethanol than corn.  How about dropping the tobacco subsidies and looking at new crops in that part of the country.  

Bring back the electric car.  The infrastructure for energy delivery is already in place.  Hydrogen is a fine alternative but all I hear is a lame plan to let big oil do the distribution.  Use the hydrogen to generate electricity at a higher level of aggregation than the individual car.  

Get busy and start locking up the oil resources we have but do not pump them yet.  Keep them in reserve pending the loss of oil from the middle east.  Let them pump their fields dry.  One exception would be the fields off Florida where the Chinese will take the oil if we don't.

There is theme here.

1.  Quit playing at the playground level with these thugs and cave dwellers.  The power is with the big players but we have alienated them all.  Our power is not all military but is also financial and technological.  Deal with the real world players and we will have better luck dealing with the thugs.

2. Take care of the US first.  Border control, immigration management, directed technology research, stronger and more effective police and fire protection, clever intelligence measures, re-investment in higher education, etc.

3. Reinvest our money in the US rather than dumping it in the middle east.  Returning the US to a leadership position and a strong negotiator with the rest of the world is what we need.  We need leadership rather than a bunch of wanna be bullies.  We are rapidly frittering our advantage away with our debt and our protections on the big corporations.  We need a vibrant, open competitive business environment that is not strangled by silly patents, lawyers, and tax incentives that protect the status quo. 

Oh yea, a real set of leaders would be nice.