The Next Campaign Stop: Iraq Hearings

Washington Post: At Tuesday's Sessions, Candidates Can Ask Questions, Try to Score Points

(WASHINGTONPOST.COM)  This story was written by Jonathan Weisman.

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When Army Gen. David H. Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan C. Crocker travel to Capitol Hill tomorrow, they might be the ones before the microphones, but the cameras will be trained on three of their inquisitors: Sens. John McCain, Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama.

The hearings before the Senate Armed Services and Foreign Relations committees promise to be as much about presidential politics as about the past six months of military and diplomatic progress in Iraq. All last summer, Washington anxiously awaited the September appearances of Petraeus, the commanding U.S. general in Iraq, and Crocker, the top U.S. diplomat in Baghdad, anticipating that their testimony could determine the political viability of continued war.

Their return engagement is eliciting no more than shrugs -- except on the political front. It has been months since Obama, McCain or Clinton appeared at a hearing, but all three contenders for the White House will take rare breaks from their campaigns to be on hand. Although the committee chairmen are loath to admit it, two relatively junior Democratic senators and one ranking Republican are likely to steal the show.

"This is sort of a dress rehearsal for who is best prepared to be commander in chief, who has the best understanding of what has happened, what was wrong in Iraq and how to fix it," noted Sen. Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.), an Armed Services Committee member and McCain backer.

For the three candidates -- and for the Senate at large -- there is little expectation of surprises. Last September, lawmakers anxiously watched for cracks, either in Republican support of President Bush's war policies or in Democratic opposition.

"It's all completely predictable this time, what everyone is going to say," said Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.), a senior Foreign Relations Committee member and Obama backer.

If anything, the campaigns have dug the divisions deeper. Besides Bush, no other politician is as vested in the success of the troop increase and new counterinsurgency strategy as is McCain. He helped promote the troop increase, then used the fall and winter's drop in violence to resurrect his campaign. Graham said McCain has the opportunity tomorrow to make those successes his own -- and to challenge his would-be Democratic rivals to prove them illusory.

With Obama and Clinton (N.Y.) still dueling for the support of the Democratic voters most disenchanted with the war, neither is about to break from promises to end it.

"We have more than 150,000 Americans in the middle of two wars, brave men and women on their second or third or fourth tours of duty in Iraq, a place where we're spending $400 million a day to help a government that refuses to help itself, a war that never should have been authorized and never should have been waged," Obama told the North Dakota State Democratic Convention on Friday.

For the outsize personalities that dominate the two committees, the political preparations for the hearings have been particularly galling. Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Joseph R. Biden Jr. (D-Del.) rejected any suggestion that he move Obama up in the questioning order rather than stick to the committee's rules on seniority. "The biggest mistake we could make is politicizing this, looking at this in terms of political advantage," he said. "The American people are sick of this."

But even they concede that the attention is unavoidable. "That's a natural thing in the middle of a political campaign, that the media will look at the candidates, scrutinize them, read all kinds of things into their answers and their body language, into their greetings and their hugs and their coughs, their sneezes and a few other things," Armed Services Committee Chairman Carl M. Levin (D-Mich.) grumbled.

Recent events in Iraq -- particularly, the Iraqi government's inconclusive assault on Shiite militia in the southern port city of Basra -- show how deep the political divisions in Washington run. Graham gave the government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki an "A" for effort but a "D" for execution, suggesting the assault showed that Iraqis are ready to defend national unity but still need U.S. military support. Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.), a McCain supporter on the Armed Services Committee, said Basra is evidence of what happens when a Western military force -- the British in this case -- withdraws too quickly.

Democrats saw something very different. "We cannot be in that position, where our troops are brought into a communal conflict and have their lives jeopardized by a prime minister who's got a political agenda, not just a military agenda, and who's highly sectarian, with a corrupt administration," Levin said.

[noloyalisti]

Where are all the GOP supporters talking about how the surge is working? Was it working yesterday for the dead Americans and Iraqis.

It is still working for the oil companies and the other war profiteers as well as their GOP benefactors. That must of have been what they meant.

[b-easy63]

EUREKA!!!! It turns out HRC DID actually sign a pledge agreeing not only to not campaign in Mi and FL but also agreeing to NOT seat the delegates. She signed it in the fall of 07.

http://www.democraticunderground.

com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&ad
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ess=385x115322

Now, of course she wants to renege, because what has occurred does not favor her. Sounds like someone just wants to cheat..er I mean... win..any way she can even if it means breaking her SIGNED pledge. So much for what that woman promises-- Hillary will lie, break promises, backstab or do anything to suit herself--NOT the country--but Hillary does it FOR Hillary, whenever following the rules or the law is not convenient.

[clemenhagen1]

The General and his prime cheerleader, McCain, will boast of reduced violence as a sign of progess with eternal peace and stability just around the corner. The truth remains far removed from this delusional fiction: the country has been turned into an ethnically cleansed series of armed / walled fiefdoms. In the south the Basra fiasco illustrated to all the strength of two entities: the mullah led Shiites and their giddy sponsor - Iran. The U.S. turned to bribery in order to placate the Sunni sectors: please take our money and weapons (we have always turned a blind eye to Saudi, Kuwaiti, and UAE complicity in the arming of the Sunni factions) and all we ask in return is you turn out the foreign elements of al Qaida who crossed into Iraq for the golden opportunity to blast away at vulnerable U.S. troops and/or Shiite civilians. In the north, the Kurds continue to consolidate their power base much to the chagrin of our former loyal allies - the Turks. This is progress, my friends. This must constitute "freedom on the march" with the blessings of democracy and prosperity to follow. One-hundred years of presence, indeed. One-hundred more years of no-bid contracts for Halliburton and BlackWater anyone?

[sjbj2322]

BLK....You''d do better to watch your own candidate cause he''s woefully ill-equiped to even be a part of this inquiry. In fact I''d be willing to bet you that anything he says is parroting of what others have said with a bit of added embellishment cause that''s all he''s ever been capable of doing on any subject put before him. He''s so unoriginal its pathetic.

[blkpresident]

I hope lil'' Hillary''s advisors have prepared her for General Patraeus'' testimony, we wouldn''t want the lil'' woman to ask a military strategist about what he thinks of stainless steel pots and pans.

[ioweign]

We wonder if the owner of the DNC, MoveOn.org, plans on taking any full page ads out with the corrupt liberal NYTimes smearing Petraeus like they did back last fall.

We will have to see how "low" they and there pals Obama and Clinton plan on going on their questions of the General come Tuesday.

Posted by perceptions5 at 08:27 AM : Apr 07, 2008

Low - you mean don''t ask "real" questions about a fraud and lie. This is Bush''s Choice Conflict - it has nothing to do with the War on Terror and has nothing to do with our National Security. Just put on the blue dress - Georgie "War Time President" wants you...

[sgtrds]

Not much of a smear, they questioned his truthfulness and the question was answered at the the harings...he isn''''t. Can''''t be a smear if it''''s true.

Posted by taddles at 10:03 AM : Apr 07, 2008

Absolutely. Petraeus was accused of being a Bush toady and has proved time and time again that he is.

[sgtrds]

One can only hope that these hearings produce a few bits of evidence to look into criminal charges against Bush and Cheney. Even if they get out of office without being arrested we must not stop pursuing them until both of the are behind bars, either here in the US or after trial in an international court for their war crimes.

[jack3213]

IF PEOPLE CONTINUE TO LEAVE THEIR HEAD IN THE SAND AND IGNORE THAT THE TOUGH WORK IS ONLY DONE WITH SOMEONE WHO IS CAPABLE OF MAKING IT HAPPEN THEY WILL SUFFICATE AND/OR BE VERY DISAPPOINTED IN THE END. CHANGE CAN ONLY HAPPEN OVER A LONG PERIOD OF TIME- AND IMPULSE CHANGE IS NEVER CHANGE IT IS JUST MORE NONSENSE. THERE IS ONLY ONE THING THAT PEOPLE ARE NOT WILLING TO SEE- THAT IGNORANCE TO THE TRUTH IS NOT AN OUTCOME FOR SUCCESSFUL CHANGE.

[taddles-2009]

"We wonder if the owner of the DNC, MoveOn.org, plans on taking any full page ads out with the corrupt liberal NYTimes smearing Petraeus like they did back last fall.

Posted by perceptions5 at 08:27 AM : Apr 07, 2008"


Not much of a smear, they questioned his truthfulness and the question was answered at the the harings...he isn''t. Can''t be a smear if it''s true.

[hungry1968]

We wonder if the owner of the DNC, MoveOn.org, plans on taking any full page ads out with the corrupt liberal NYTimes smearing Petraeus like they did back last fall.

Posted by perceptions5 at 08:27 AM : Apr 07, 2008





I hope so. It''s refreshing to see someone with enough guts to stand up to this corrupt regime.

[hungry1968]

"This is sort of a dress rehearsal for who is best prepared to be commander in chief, who has the best understanding of what has happened, what was wrong in Iraq and how to fix it," noted Sen. Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.), an Armed Services Committee member and McCain backer.






This comment just shows that Graham IS NOT the one to fix it as he is completely unaware of the situation.

The "Iraq problem" can''t be fixed. They view us as occupiers, and are going to keep attacking us until we are gone.

Exactly the same way that the Palestinians view Israel as occupiers, and have been attacking them until they are gone. How long has that been going on - 60 years?

[wdrussell1]

I am surprised at how little was made of the comments of former Bush toadie Douglas Feith. He said that if Saddam never threatened America and if 9/11 never happened, Bush still planned on invading and occupying Iraq.
Over 4000 Americans have died in the name of Bush.
With George it is all about George.

[perceptions5]

We wonder if the owner of the DNC, MoveOn.org, plans on taking any full page ads out with the corrupt liberal NYTimes smearing Petraeus like they did back last fall.

We will have to see how "low" they and there pals Obama and Clinton plan on going on their questions of the General come Tuesday.