The U.S. military is back in Iraq. The Obama administration is currently conducting airstrikes against ISIS militants and is slowly increasing the number of troops on the ground. Critics like Senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham say that is not enough, and they bemoan the fact that the administration didn’t keep soldiers in Iraq past 2011. They are sure that U.S. interests will suffer without a strong U.S. presence in the region. Chaos followed when Washington left, they say, and someday it will come back to haunt us.
The critics are wrong. More U.S. forces are not needed, even given the current crisis. The United States was right to draw down forces in the region, and it can continue to secure its key objectives with a small military footprint. When it comes to the Middle East, less is more.
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