White House Seeks New Approach On Iraq

A bipartisan panel is appealing to President Bush's desire for new suggestions on achieving peace in Iraq that could give Republicans and Democrats a chance at consensus — or at least a tenable framework for agreement.

Monday was a pivotal day for talks involving the Iraq Study Group. Headed by former Secretary of State James A. Baker III, the group plans to release its findings before the end of the year.

Even before it is finished, the study group's report is seen by many as having huge stakes, coming after an election that gave Democrats congressional control and reshaped President Bush's final two years in office.

"The president looks forward to sharing his thoughts with the Iraq Study Group, as do other administration officials," said Gordon Johndroe, spokesman for the National Security Council, on Sunday. "He is open to any ideas and suggestions on the way forward."

While Mr. Bush appears ready to change his tone on the Iraq war and listen to new ideas, there are two big hurdles facing the group regarding any kind of compromise: reaching a consensus and getting the president to accept what they come up with, reports CBS senior White House correspondent Bill Plante.

Meanwhile, Gen. John Abizaid, head of the U.S. Central Command, met Monday with the Iraqi prime minister to "reaffirm President Bush's commitment" to success in Iraq, the government said.

Nouri al-Maliki and Abizaid, who commands all U.S. forces in the Middle East, discussed "the effect neighboring countries are having on the security situation in Iraq," the government statement said in a clear reference to Iran and Syria.

The study group, which is co-chaired by former Democratic Rep. Lee Hamilton, was to meet not only with Mr. Bush, but also with Vice President Dick Cheney and National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley. Talks were set separately with Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, National Intelligence Director John Negroponte and CIA Director Michael Hayden.

And British Prime Minister Tony Blair planned to speak to the commission via video link on Tuesday.

Blair in a speech later Monday in London was to urge Iran and Syria to cooperate more with the international community to promote stability in Iraq by cutting support to insurgents there, according to excerpts released in advance by his office.

"Throughout the conflict we have been calling on Iran and Syria to do more to stop the flow into Iraq of foreign fighters, bomb-making equipment and know-how," British Defense Secretary Des Browne said Monday.

"We will continue to talk to all of Iraq's neighbors and to make clear the importance of a solution in Iraq in a regional context," he said in an interview with British Broadcasting Corp. radio.

Baker has indicated the recommendations will fall somewhere between the troop withdrawal strategy that Republicans like to say Democrats favor and the stay the course policy until recently used by Mr. Bush and widely ridiculed by Democrats.

On Sunday, Mr. Bush's advisers adopted a new tone, days after a dissatisfied public handed the White House a divided government.

"Full speed ahead" in Iraq, as Cheney put it in the final days of the campaign, was replaced by repeated calls for a "fresh perspective" and an acknowledgment that "nobody can be happy" with the situation in Iraq.

"The president obviously wants to take a whole fresh look at what we're doing in Iraq. Nobody's happy with what our situation in Iraq is now," said Josh Bolten, Mr. Bush's chief of staff, on CBS' Face The Nation Sunday.

Democrats, meanwhile, showed they were not all in accord on how to proceed in Iraq. Although party leaders back a multifaceted approach to stabilizing the country, lawmakers have not unified on when to bring troops home without risking more chaos in Iraq.

Sen. Carl Levin, the incoming chairman of the Armed Services Committee, urged that U.S. troops begin coming home in phases within four months to six months. He and Sen. Joe Biden, the incoming chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, predicted many Republicans would support such a resolution now that the election is over.

"We have to tell Iraqis that the open-ended commitment is over," Levin said.

Yet the Senate's top Democrat, Harry Reid, did not seem to go as far. He said he thought the withdrawal of U.S. troops should began within a few months, but when asked if he would insist on a specific date, he said, "Absolutely not."

The administration will not support a timetable for drawing down troops, Bolten said.