Yesterday's testimony by Gen. David Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker before two Senate committees almost certainly including the next president was thought to be a dramatic moment in the campaign. John McCain, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama all had their moment in the spotlight, but for the most part, what occurred was not so much high theatre as a rather subdued recognition that the war in Iraq continues to be a difficult problem for both parties. Whoever wins the White House in November will inherit an unpopular war with no easy solutions. Here's a sampling of today's coverage to provide a taste of yesterday's tone:
"The testimony by Gen. Petraeus and U.S. Ambassador Ryan Crocker puts both political parties on the spot. Democrats must explain their support for a fixed timetable for withdrawal in the face of Gen. Petraeus's clear opposition. Republicans will enter the fall campaign with as many as 140,000 soldiers in Iraq, making it harder for them to defend the unpopular war." – Yochi J. Dreazen, Wall Street Journal."The back-to-back hearings gave the candidates an opportunity to showcase their competing claims to being best-equipped to be commander in chief. But the questioning -- mostly low-key and respectful -- was lacking in fireworks." – Janet Hook, Los Angeles Times.
"Defying the predictions of some Washington pundits, they left the political theater at the hearing room door. McCain, whose speeches on Iraq usually eviscerate his opponents, today toned it down." – Chip Reid, CBS News."Their tempered performances seemed to reflect the political risks of appearing too easy or tough on General Petraeus in the klieg-light atmosphere of a Washington hearing room halfway through a presidential election." – Elizabeth Bumiller, New York Times."The hearings also hinted at the fall campaign. Republicans peppered Petraeus and Crocker with questions about bringing an end to the unpopular war, but praised them for military advances in Iraq and underscored the US national security interests in achieving a stable Iraq. Democrats, aware that many voters have turned their attention from the war to the faltering economy, hammered the top US officials in Iraq on why the United States is still spending tens of billions of dollars for rebuilding and safeguarding Iraq, instead of forcing Iraq to use its extensive oil revenues." – Susan Milligan, Boston Globe.Re-Raising Wright: Clinton supporter Lanny Davis takes to the Wall Street Journal op-ed page today to argue there are still questions Obama has not answered about his relationship with his former pastor Jeremiah Wright. Among them: "Why did he stay a member of the congregation? Why didn't he speak up earlier? And why did he reward Rev. Wright with a campaign position even after knowing of his comments?"
Davis says asking such questions leads to complaints that he is "playing the race card" but insists: "Attacking the motives of those who feel this discomfort about Senator Obama's response or nonresponse to Reverend Wright's comments is not just unfair and wrong. It also misses the important electoral point about winning the general election in November: This issue is not going away. If many loyal, progressive Democrats remain troubled by this issue, then there must be even more unease among key swing voters – soft 'Reagan Democrats,' independents and moderate Republicans – who will decide the 2008 election."
The "L" Word Continues To Pop Up: Chelsea Clinton may have gone for months on the campaign trail without having to field a question about the Lewinsky scandal on the college campuses she visits, but she's getting plenty now. Three times in the past two weeks, the former first daughter has been asked about it and how the scandal impacted or what it says about her mother. Monday brought the latest example when Chelsea spoke at Perdue University. Rather than giving the response she has in the previous incidents (basically saying "it's none of your business), Clinton this time got more to the point. "If that's what you want to vote on, that's what you should vote on," she said according to the AP. "But I think there are other people (who are) going to vote on things like health care and economics."
Around The Track
In an interview with NPR, Clinton sought to set the record straight about the nomination process: "There is some fundamental misunderstanding of the way this whole nominating process works." She said. "Every delegate has the right to choose whom they will vote for. … At the end of the day, there is no requirement that anybody do anything other than make their own best judgment."Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen, a still-uncommitted superdelegate, understands why Clinton is remaining in the race after watching Kansas' near-miracle comeback against Memphis in the NCAA basketball championship game Monday night. "I was thinking … that the last 90 seconds were so extraordinary, you think it's the kind of thing that keeps Hillary Clinton in the race."If Obama loses Pennsylvania, it won't be because he didn't spend enough money in the state. His campaign is currently spending about $2 million per week on television ads, reports the Boston Globe.Mike Huckabee is getting ready for something, but what that might be is a mystery. His campaign Web site features only a countdown clock promising that something is "coming soon" – in six days.