John Warner "not optimistic" after trip to Iraq
By: beachmom
Published On: 8/20/2007 6:06:20 PM
From McClatchy:
... two prominent members of the Senate Armed Services Committee completed a two-day visit to Iraq and offered a bleak assessment of prospects here.
In a joint statement, Sens. Carl Levin, D-Mich., the committee's chairman, and John Warner, R-Va., the committee's senior Republican, said that while a surge of U.S. troops had tamped down violence in some parts of Baghdad, there was no sign of political reconciliation between Iraq's Sunni and Shiite rivals and "we are not optimistic about the prospects." They said U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker shared their views.
...
Levin said he and Warner spent two hours with Army Gen. David Petraeus, the U.S. commander in Iraq, but that Petraeus didn't say what he planned to recommend about U.S. Iraq policy in a much-anticipated report to Congress next month.
I wonder if Thelma Drake will now feel compelled to tell the well respected Republican Senator that "people see what they want to see" the way she dismissed similar pessimistic calls by Democrats. Or maybe it is she who is unable to see reality.
Comments
Well, that's just wonderful. (Lowell - 8/20/2007 6:12:00 PM)
Now, will John Warner actually DO something about the situation and stop voting in lockstep with Bush on this FUBAR war?
You can say that again. The latest roll call: (beachmom - 8/20/2007 6:19:57 PM)
http://sfgate.com/cg...
We need John Warner to join the following Republicans: Hagel, Snowe, Collins, and Smith to say enough is enough.
Exactly (Rob - 8/20/2007 7:10:46 PM)
The things-look-bad-but-stay-the-course logic is maddening.
The Warner and the Carpenter, were walking close at hand... (Hugo Estrada - 8/20/2007 7:54:21 PM)
Senator Warner expressing concern for Iraq
"I weep for you," the Warner said:
"I deeply sympathize."
With sobs and tears he sorted out
Those of the largest size,
Holding his pocket-handkerchief
Before his streaming eyes.q
Pro-Withdrawal Virginians May Be Sitting Pretty (jsrutstein - 8/20/2007 6:50:07 PM)
Warner has indeed let us down before by talking moderate while voting conservative, but this time I think he may walk the walk. There's a long history of politicians who dare to defy their parties on their way out the door. If Warner does join the Dems on this, it probably signifies he won't run again. If so, it will be incredibly difficult for Tom Davis, Warner's hand-picked heir apparent, to do other than support Warner's pro-withdrawal stand and pledge to continue it. The icing on the cake is the pro-withdrawal movement will have at least one more vote, Warner's, and Davis would probably fail to get the nomination from the stay-the-course VA GOP. If the Dems were to nominate anyone halfway decent, they'd likely get the seat, not to mention capturing Davis's vacated House seat. First priority, of course, is replacing Davis's wife with Chap Petersen this November.
No wonder he's thinking about retiring... (Kindler - 8/20/2007 8:39:23 PM)
Who the hell would want to be a Republican at this point in history?
He said "NO POLITICAL PROGRESS" (MohawkOV1D - 8/20/2007 10:06:39 PM)
He didn't say "NO MILITARY PROGRESS". So the Military (our Military) must remain. At least that's been what they've been saying all along. There is no way Warner is going to change the "conversation" about Iraq.
"We must stay or there will be chaos. Innocent men and women will die if we leave." As if the day to day life of Iraqi's, and our troops, isn't already chaos.
The whole point of the surge was (beachmom - 8/21/2007 9:03:08 AM)
to create "breathing space" for the Iraqi politicians to come to a political reconciliation. In fact, the political situation there has gotten much worse, and will not get better. Meanwhile, "Wack a Mole" is happening where violence is turning up in other places while the troops are concentrating on Baghdad. This war cannot be "won" (since it's a civil war, exactly which side do we want to win?), and unless Bush plans to truly occupy and run Iraq, something the American people are clearly against as are the Iraqi people, we depend on the different players in Iraq -- Shi'ites, Sunnis, and Kurds -- to bring stability. That is not happening and will never happen with America's heavy footprint still there.
Only a short year ago... (buzzbolt - 8/20/2007 10:09:21 PM)
Only about a year ago Senator George Allen was reporting that things were going so well in Iraq that he had actually seen "Convention Centers" being built. No one seems to remember the "Convention Centers", especially other Warhawk Republicans.
So the next Kiwanis convention isn't being planned for Baghdad? (Kindler - 8/21/2007 9:48:27 PM)