The Iraqis told us to get the fuck out. I have no idea if Germany or Japan or South Korea ever made such a formal statement after we helped establish their new government, and we just blew them off. If we did, that seems kind of shitty.
But after lingering in Iraq for 9 years, and after having their own people tell us they were better off without us, I just don't understand the argument for imposing our base in their country.
As has been pointed out countless times, a primary reason Osama Bin Laden declared war on the US was because we kept a large military base in his home country of Saudi Arabia. After all this bullshit, it just seems like a bad idea to do the exact same thing in Iraq against the will of their people.
I feel bad for the Iraqis. But jesus. There comes a time when you have to stop digging yourself into holes. Especially if the people you're digging the holes for don't want them and are getting kind of pissed off you are piling dirt on their rugs.