Editing Jay Garner (section)

==Involvement in the Iraq War==
In 2003 Garner was selected to [[Civilian Administrator of Iraq|lead]] the [[Post-invasion Iraq, 2003–present|post-war reconstruction efforts in Iraq]], along with three deputies, including British [[Major-General (United Kingdom)|Major-General]] [[Tim Cross]]. Garner was regarded as a natural choice by the [[Presidency of George W. Bush|Bush administration]] given his earlier similar role in the north. General Garner was to develop and implement plans to assist the Iraqis in developing governance and reconstructing the country once [[Saddam Hussein]] was deposed.<ref name="Lawrence Davidson 2006">Arthur Goldschmidt Jr. and Lawrence Davidson, ''A Concise History of the Middle East'' (Westview Press, 2006), 432–438</ref>

Following the defeat of the Saddam Hussein regime in [[Baghdad]], there was widespread looting, rampaging, and general chaos throughout [[Iraq]]. Some of the most important [[monument]]s, such as the [[National museum of iraq|national museum]], were under attack.<ref name="Lawrence Davidson 2006"/> Furthermore, the [[infrastructure]] of the country was in ruins, ministries were broken into, and government records were destroyed. The situation in Iraq became chaotic and [[Anarchy|anarchic]].<ref name="Deborah Gerner 2008">Jillian Schwedler and Deborah Gerner, eds., ''Understanding the Contemporary: Middle East'' (Lynne Rienner Publishers, Inc., 2008), 248–251</ref> The only ministry which was protected by the occupying forces was the [[Ministry of Oil (Iraq)|oil ministry]]. In addition, many exiled leaders from [[Iran]] and some from the [[Western world|West]] returned to [[Iraq]].<ref>Jack Covarrubias and Tom Lansford, eds., ''Strategic Interests in the Middle East: Opposition or Support for US Foreign Policy'' (Ashgate Publishing Company, 2007), 74–76</ref> The [[Presidency of George W. Bush|Bush administration]] selected [[Lieutenant general (United States)|Lieutenant General]] Jay Garner to lead the [[Coalition Provisional Authority]] (an intermediary government) in an attempt to rid [[Iraq]] of the chaos and anarchy that consumed the area. Garner's plan was to choose government officials from the former Iraqi regime to help lead the country.<ref name="Brian Bennett 2003">Brian Bennett, Joshua Kucera, Terry Mccarthy, Michael Weisskopf and Mark Thompson, "Sorting The Bad From The Not So Bad," ''Time'', May 19, 2003.</ref>

Garner began reconstruction efforts in March 2003 with plans aiming for Iraqis to hold [[election]]s within 90 days and for the [[United States|U.S.]] to quickly pull troops out of the cities to a desert base. [[Jalal Talabani]], a member of Jay Garner's staff in [[Kuwait]] before the war, was consulted on several occasions to help the U.S. select a liberal Iraqi government; this would be the first liberal government to exist in [[Iraq]]. In an interview with [[Time (magazine)|Time magazine]], Garner stated that "as in any [[Totalitarianism|totalitarian]] regime, there were many people who needed to join the [[Ba'ath Party (Iraqi-dominated faction)|Baath Party]] in order to get ahead in their careers. We don't have a problem with most of them. But we do have a problem with those who were part of the thug mechanism under Saddam. Once the U.S. identifies those in the second group, we will get rid of them."<ref name="Brian Bennett 2003"/> On April 15, 2003, General Garner called a conference in the city of [[Nasiriyah]], where Garner, along with 100 Iraqis, discussed the future of Iraq. Garner called a follow-up meeting on April 28, 2003.<ref name="Lawrence Davidson 2006"/> 250 Iraqis attended this meeting, and five of these Iraqis were selected by Garner's administration as the core leaders of the new Iraqi government: [[Masoud Barzani|Masood Barzani]] was appointed as head of the [[Kurdistan Democratic Party]], Talabani as head of the rival [[Patriotic Union of Kurdistan]], [[Abdul Aziz al-Hakim|Abdul Aziz Al Hakim]] was appointed as the leader of the Supreme Assembly for Islamic Revolution in Iraq, [[Ahmed Chalabi|Ahmad Chalabi]] was chosen to represent the [[Iraqi National Congress]] and [[Ayad Allawi|Iyad Allawi]] was appointed as the leader of the [[Iraqi National Accord]]. Garner's selection caused quite a stir amongst many Iraqis. Although many Iraqis were open to the change that Garner and the U.S. were bringing to Iraq, others were resentful. Iraqis with a [[Shia Islam|Shi'a]] background felt underrepresented in Garner's selection for government.<ref name="Iraq 2003">"Iraq: Entering a new epoch," ''Middle East'', June 2003.</ref> Three of the five officials appointed as key members in Iraq's new government were of [[Sunni Islam|Sunni]] background, one official was from a mixed Sunni–Shi'a background, and only one of the officials was of pure Shi'a background. The Shi'a felt left out and underrepresented, considering they comprise over 60% of the Iraqi population.<ref name="Iraq 2003"/> Furthermore, many Iraqis felt this new government was not selected in a [[Democracy|democratic]] manner, as the [[U.S.]] had promised. 
 
Once the leaders were selected, a plan to hold elections in Iraq, where members would be selected, began on May 6, 2003, and ended on November 14, 2003, when the plan was abandoned.<ref name="Deborah Gerner 2008"/> General Garner would be replaced by a new [[Ambassadors of the United States|American Ambassador]] to Iraq, [[Paul Bremer]], who took his role as head of the Coalition Provisional Authority. Following Garner's dismissal, it was planned that an Iraq government would take power in June 2004. [[Ayad Allawi|Iyad Allawi]] was designated to lead the Iraqi interim authority. Allawi was a former [[Baathist]] of [[Shia Islam|Shi'a]] origin. Allawi had many credentials, including previous work experience with the [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]].<ref name="Lawrence Davidson 2006"/>

When Garner was replaced in his role by [[L. Paul Bremer|Paul Bremer]] on May 11, 2003, there was quite a bit of speculation as to why he was replaced so abruptly. It has been suggested that Garner was moved aside because he did not agree with the [[White House]] about who should decide how to reconstruct Iraq. He wanted early elections—90 days after the fall of [[Baghdad]]—and the new government to decide how to run the country and what to do with its assets. Garner said "I don't think [Iraqis] need to go by the [[U.S.]] plan, I think that what we need to do is set an Iraqi government that represents the freely elected will of the people. It's their country ... their oil."<ref>[[Greg Palast]], "[http://www.zmag.org/content/showarticle.cfm?SectionID=15&ItemID=10399 Unreported: The Zarqawi Invitation] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060618005914/http://www.zmag.org/content/showarticle.cfm?SectionID=15&ItemID=10399 |date=2006-06-18 }}", ''[[ZNet]]'', June 10, 2006</ref> Some experts faulted Garner for prioritizing elections over improving and [[privatizing]] the Iraqi economy.<ref>Dilip Hiro, The Nation, September 28, 2007, "How Bush's Iraqi Oil Grab Went Awry" https://www.thenation.com/article/how-bushs-iraqi-oil-grab-went-awry/ {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190327184028/https://www.thenation.com/article/how-bushs-iraqi-oil-grab-went-awry/ |date=March 27, 2019 }}</ref>

Garner was interviewed in ''[[No End in Sight]]'', a 2007 [[documentary movie]] very critical of the handling of the [[Occupation of Iraq (2003–2011)|Iraq occupation]].