Junior Scout [UPDATED]
I won’t get into the bickering over Iraq right now; I just want to note the symbolism of the questioning order among the senators.
The top U.S. military commander in Iraq testified Tuesday that there has been “significant but uneven progress” in security in the war-ravaged nation.
Gen. David Petraeus told the Senate Armed Services Committee that the “surge” of U.S. troops last year and the incorporation of citizens’ security groups have yielded results. Both efforts have served to reduce “the areas where al Qaeda enjoys support.”
The Iraqi military still needs work, he said, but recent military operations in Basra demonstrate that Iraqi forces can do things today that would have been impossible a year ago.
…
Sen. John McCain, the presumed GOP presidential candidate and committee’s ranking member, acknowledged that Iraqi officials need to take responsibility for their country.
However, despite a recent upsurge in fighting in Iraq, McCain said there were signs of progress there.
“We are no longer staring into the abyss of defeat,” McCain said, adding that he has no desire to keep U.S. troops in Iraq “a minute longer than necessary.”
…
In addition to McCain, Democratic Sens. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama will have the opportunity to ask Crocker and Petraeus questions Tuesday.
Since questioners are ranked in order of seniority (read: experience), Sen. Obama is expected to get his chance around 11:52 this evening, some time after Jared, the Subway spokesman, and just before Pamela Anderson.
UPDATE
Michelle has the money quote from Hillary:
“I think it could be fair to say that it might well be irresponsible to continue the policy that has not produced the results that have been promised time and time again, at such tremendous cost to our national security and to the men and women who wear the uniform of the United States military.”
Not exactly “pay any price, bear any burden”, is it?
Between all the doublespeak at the beginning and the boilerplate support-the-troops language at the end is a little kernel of truth: results have been promised time and time again.
And now they’re being delivered, Senator. Comment?