Good news (of sorts - all depends on your point of view) from another front: Washington, DC. Iraq's National Security Advisor visits US to meet with congressional leaders.
I think this article shows the Democrats to be stuck in their position with very little wiggle room: Our way or . . . well . . . our way is bestest becuase we say so! (*use whiny SEN Reid voice*)WASHINGTON — Mowaffak al-Rubaie, the national security adviser to Iraq’s prime minister, undertook on Tuesday what may have been his most challenging mission yet: trying to persuade American lawmakers who have all but run out of patience that still more patience is required. . . .
“I know that they are running out of patience, and I understand this very well,” Mr. Rubaie said in a Monday interview in which he outlined his case. “And we have to play the political game. But I feel we are on the last mile of a walk toward success, and if they let go and don’t take our hand, I feel that we are going to lose everything.” . . .
“We need to start lobbying in D.C.,” Mr. Rubaie said, adding that the effort was the idea of the Iraqi government, not the Bush administration. “We need to make people understand our perspective — what are the challenges we are facing, what are the difficulties we are facing. We are not lying and doing nothing.” . . .
Mr. Rubaie also insisted that the troop withdrawal deadlines some lawmakers are seeking to impose are unrealistic and would even embolden the enemy. . . .
In the session with [Senator Carl] Levin, Mr. Rubaie stressed that Iraq was involved in a historic process to overcome the long legacy of authoritarian rule, and that the early withdrawal of American troops would lead to chaos.
Mr. Levin, for his part, stuck firmly to his position that the United States should begin a partial troop withdrawal in four months to put pressure on the Iraqi leaders to make the necessary political compromises.
Posts
