July 16, 2007
Sunday Snapshot
NSA Stephen Hadley made the Sunday show rounds and Iraq remained the main topic of the weekend shows:
Hadley: "Everybody is looking at how we can get to a point where Iraq is in a different place and our role is different. ... And it starts with, in September, a series of reports of where we are in Iraq, both from the government and outside the government, and a report from the commander in the field and our ambassador in the field, the guys charged with carrying out the existing strategy."
Asked if he thinks the situation in Iraq will look different in Sept: "I think it will. I think we will have had two additional months of our security strategy going forward" ("Face the Nation," CBS, 7/15).
Asked how confident he is the admin can hold the Senate on Iraq: "There's been a lot of attention on the comments that Senator Lugar and Senator Warner have made and the legislation they have introduced. It's interesting, too, if you look at that, they are not calling for an arbitrary withdrawal deadline or a withdrawal schedule. They are also talking and recognizing that what happens in Iraq deeply affects American security at home. ... All they're simply saying is we need to think about now how we can transition to a new phase in Iraq when U.S. forces may have a different role."
More: "There will be in September, supplemented by a series of reports from the administration, from outside the administration -- and that will be the time to consider the kinds of questions and issues these gentlemen have raised" ("Fox News Sunday," 7/15).
More on Lugar-Warner: "They've done a useful service in indicating the kinds of things that we should be thinking about. But the time to begin that process is September. And the opening shot really ought to be to hear from the commanders on the ground who can make an assessment of where we are in our current strategy" ("This Week," ABC, 7/15).
Hadley, on Iraqi PM Maliki: "We think that he has grown as a leader and is more effective as a leader, but there is a piece that remains, which is the basic bargain between Sunni, Shia, and Kurds, about how they are going to work together under a democratic constitution. That is not yet in place. There are some things we are seeing that we think are hopeful. Prime Minister Maliki is working more closely with the presidency council that has Sunni, Shia, and Kurdish representation. We are hopeful that a political bloc may emerge among the key parties across all three groups that can provide a caucus within the council of representatives to get this legislation. But they have more work to do. Prime Minister Maliki has to lead. But the representatives of the other three groups have to follow and step forward and make some hard decisions" ("Late Edition," CNN, 7/15).
SENATORS HAVE THEIR SAY
Sen. John Warner (R-VA), asked if the current Iraq mission would pass a vote today: "I doubt very much that it would."
Asked if he expects a new strategy from Bush, Warner: "Well, of course, some modification to the strategy. But it's going to be taken in context of what his commanding officers recommend of him. He's the president. General Petraeus is not going to decide it. Petraeus reports; the president decides. He is the commander in chief. And I have confidence that he will look at that ground situation and the lack of accomplishment by the government. After all, we started this surge thing to give a certain degree of security in Baghdad so that the Baghdad government could perform. It's not likely to perform as we anticipated. So the president will have to make some changes, and I'm confident he will do so, report to the Congress" ("This Week," ABC, 7/15).
Sen. Richard Lugar (R-IN), on working with Dems: "I'm hopeful that, in fact, most Democrats will support our amendment, just as a matter of common sense" ("This Week," ABC, 7/15).
Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN): "I don't think the strategy is working. I think we need a new strategy. I think most senators do and the country does and I wouldn't be surprised if the president does" ("Face the Nation," CBS, 7/15).
Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI): "They try to make it out in their own self-assessment that this is a glass which is half full rather than it being half empty. As a matter of fact, this is a cup or a glass with a big hole in the bottom. This is not a half full, half empty issue. They have made no progress in the one key area that everyone agrees must have progress or the violence will not end, and that's on the political side of things" ("Fox News Sunday," 7/15).
Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI): "The premise of the president's surge was that there would be political activity, political decision. They haven't materialized. And I doubt very seriously in the next several weeks they will materialize" ("Late Edition," CNN, 7/15).
IF IT'S SUNDAY, IT'S A FIGHT ON MEET THE PRESS
And Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Jim Webb (D-VA) had a contentious debate on "Meet the Press."
Graham: "When General Petraeus comes back, he will tell us these things. I want to leave. No American wants to occupy Iraq. But history will judge us, my friend, not when we left, but what we left behind. Do we leave a resurgent al Qaeda that will kill every moderate who helped us? Do we empower Iran? Do they control the south of Iraq? Nobody ever asks the consequences, polls the consequences of this idea, just wash your hands of Iraq."
Webb: "It's been, it's been a hard, it's been a hard month Lindsey. You need to calm down my friend."
Graham: "I'm going to listen to this general, and I'm not going to let any politician take the place of the general."
Webb: "Lindsey's had a hard month. You know, these people who have, you know, gathered around..."
Graham: "I don't know about Lindsey having a hard month."
Webb: "The traditional operational policy has been if you've been gone for a year, you get two years back. We're now in a situation where the soldiers and the Marines are having less than a one to one ratio, and somebody needs to speak up for them rather than simply defending what this president's been doing."
Graham: "When they re-enlist in the highest numbers anywhere else in the military, they're speaking..."
Webb: "You know, this is one thing I really—this is one thing I really take objection to..."
Graham: "...the soldiers are speaking, my friend. Let them win."
Webb: "...is politicians who—at the..."
Graham: "Let them win."
Webb: "Politicians who -- may I speak?"
Graham: "They want to win, let them win."
Webb: "Is politicians who try to put their political views into the mouths of soldiers. You can look at poll after poll, and the political views of the United States military are no different than the country at large. Go take a look at the New York Times today."
Graham: "The soldiers..."
Webb: "Less than half of the military believes that we should be in Iraq in the first place."
Graham: "Have you been to Iraq? Have you ever been and talked to them? I've been seven times."
Webb: "You know, have you ever been to these -- I've been -- I've covered two wars as a correspondent..."
Graham: "Have you been to Iraq?"
Webb: "I have been to Afghanistan as a journalist."
Graham: "Have you been to Iraq and have you been to Iraq and talked to the soldiers?"
Webb: "You know, you haven't been to Iraq."
Graham: "I've been there seven times."
Webb: "You know, you go see the dog and pony shows."
Graham: "I've been there as a reservist, I have been there and I'm going back in August."
Webb: "That's what congressmen do. Yeah, I have, I've been a member of the military when the senators come in."
Graham: "Well, listen, something we can agree on, we both admire the men and women in uniform. I don't doubt your patriotism."
Webb: "Don't put political words in their mouth."
Graham: "You know, my election..."
Webb: "You've been doing it ever since I've been in Congress."
Graham: "I'm up for re-election. Every Republican who's supporting this position is doing it against the polls."
Webb: "You know, you said on the floor, 'Let them win. They want it.'"
Graham: "This is not about my election, my friend..."
Webb: "They want it, my friend."
Graham: "...this is about the next generation."
Webb: "No, you said on the floor this week, 'Let them win.'"
Graham: "The troops are not the problem. The troops can win. I..."
Webb: "Thirty-five percent of the United States military agrees with the policy of this president."
Graham: "Well, why do they keep..."
Webb: "By poll. By poll."
Graham: "...re-enlisting? Why do they go back?"
Webb: "Because they love their country."
Graham: "That's not the problem. No, because..."
Webb: "Because they love their country, they do not do it for political reasons."
Graham: "And they..."
Webb: "My family's been doing this since the Revolutionary war."
Graham: "Yeah, well, so, so has my family."
After NBC's Russert thanked the two of them for appearing on the show, Graham remarked: "Good television" (NBC, 7/15).
BUYING TIME
Joe Biden was on "Late Edition":
On Iraq: "We're at a stalemate between the president and everybody, quite frankly. The president -- I think his only strategy here is to keep this from completely imploding and handing it off to the next president. I really mean that."
On his upcoming book: "I wrote a book back when I thought I was going to be working with John Kerry in a Kerry administration. It had nothing to do with presidential politics. It's called 'Promises to Keep.' And I was encouraged to write it by a guy named Richard Ben Cramer, who wrote the book 'What it Takes,' and asked how my personal values inform my public policy. And I talk about a lot of things, including everything from the Supreme Court to the Balkans to Iraq, and how I think that the most significant thing about what we need in leadership is someone who -- and people who are willing to get back up" (CNN, 7/15).
ROUNDTABLE ROUNDUP
John McCain was the main topic of all the roundtables this weekend:
The "Fox News Sunday" roundtable discussed North Korea, Iraq, and McCain:
NPR's Liasson, on Iraq: "There was some thinking that all of a sudden July was going to be the new September. I think by the end of the week, we can now say September is still September."
Weekly Standard's Kristol, on McCain: "He's unlikely to be the nominee. But the only way back, in my view, is to make the case that he is the only one we can trust to be commander in chief. That's always been his trump card. He went away from it. He fought the president on interrogations. He got wrapped up in the immigration thing. His claim to be the next president of the United States is, 'Trust me in the Oval Office. I will fight and win the wars we need to fight and win.' And the way to do that over the next two or three months, the way to bring that message home, I think, is to forget about a lot of this campaign stuff. ... Be, in effect, the head of the no surrender caucus in the Senate, in the Congress. I think he can win that fight in September."
The "Face the Nation" roundtable discussed McCain:
Time's Tumulty: "The real question here, at least for me, is where does any new support for John McCain come from? And where does any new money come from? Who is really going to want to be writing checks to this campaign that has shown that, you know, all they can do is waste money?"
Washington Post's Balz: "We've seen remarkable comebacks. Bill Clinton was given up for dead in January of 1992 and came back to be nominee and the president. ... So you can't say this can't happen, but I think when you look at the course of this campaign, this would be one of the most remarkable comebacks. I think he's got to essentially disappear for the next 40 or 45 days, burrow into places like New Hampshire and Iowa, but do it quietly. Let the other attention go elsewhere, and hope that when he comes up for air in the fall, he's got some money, that they've got the base of support in places like New Hampshire that they can begin to build on and hope that events turn their way. Their view is that this is still an unstable Republican race, and it is. But, boy, they've got such problems."
The "Late Edition" roundtable discussed Iraq, executive privilege, and McCain:
CNN's Henry: "Maybe now that he's on the ropes, we'll see the old McCain come back. That's obviously what he's hoping for, the battler, the maverick, et cetera."
The "Meet the Press" roundtable discussed WH '08:
Mike Murphy, on the McCain campaign: "They're in big money trouble. It's very bad. But with an ultra-low overhead and John McCain, who's already famous, which is an advantage, out there in the fight, I think in the next six or seven weeks, he can start to get a message that catches on a little bit. America loves a comeback story. I think he's back in the race, but it's much more of a long shot now than it used to be."
Bloomberg's Hunt: "In New Hampshire ... I tell you why I think it's so hard for him. The last time, he won because of the independents. ... This time, they're going to vote in the Democratic primary, not the Republican primary. That makes it almost impossible for John McCain."
Bob Novak, on Giuliani: "He has a deaf ear when it comes to Republicans."
The "This Week" roundtable discussed Iraq and McCain:
George Will: "Say what you will about the length of our campaigns. They serve the function of revealing the possession of absence of presidential qualities. There is a reason why the American people only twice in our history have elected a sitting Senator. Senators don't run anything larger than a Senate office. They don't have executive skills proven there. The Senator could not run his own campaign. He burns through this money. He didn't know what was going on. He couldn't pick people. The people he picked had not just bad judgment, some of them had bad character. They seemed to have been enriching themselves with self dealing in this."
ABC's Donaldson: "Well, he can't go forward if he has no money. So he suspends his campaign but does not withdraw and hopes that Giuliani and Romney and maybe Fred Thompson if he gets in, self-implode in some way and they have the possibility of making mistakes."
Posted at 08:36 AM
Comments
If Lugar and Warner are man enough they will introduce a "real" binding legislation with timeline. At the end of the day all of them are Bush sycophants!
cn | 07.16.07 08:55 AM
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