General David Petraeus, commander of the multinational forces in Iraq, and Ryan Crocker, the United States Ambassador to Iraq, recently appeared before committees of the House of Representatives and the Senate. Their testimony was an update on the progress of the troop surge in Iraq.
    “The military objectives of the surge are, in large measure, being met,” General Petraeus said. With the success of the surge, he believes that troop levels can be reduced in the coming months. He cautioned members of Congress that “Iraq’s problems will require a long-term effort… . Our assessments underscore, in fact, the importance of recognizing that a premature drawdown of our forces would likely have devastating consequences.”
    While reactions to the testimony were largely split along party lines, presidential candidates had different reactions to the status update.
    “General Petraeus’ report strengthens my conviction that we can achieve our objectives in Iraq and that we must not withdraw precipitously,” said former Senator Fred Thompson, who announced his bid for the White House on September 5 on The Tonight Show. “He and Ambassador Crocker gave a candid assessment, and I believe General Petraeus when he says that the security situation is improving and momentum is now on our side.” Mr. Thompson is considered by many to be the wildcard in this race due to his late entrance and lack of positions on the books.
    Mr. Thompson, a former senator from Tennessee, spoke of his resolve to stay in Iraq for the time being so as not to “embolden al Qaeda, strengthen Iran, betray our allies, and dishonor the memories of the men and women who have sacrificed so much to keep us safe.”
    “Today’s testimony from General Petraeus and Ambassador Crocker confirms the progress being made by our troops in Iraq,” said former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney. “The importance of a successful conclusion to Iraq must be weighed in light of the global threat of violent jihad and terror. America must continue its commitment to the strategy Gen. Petraeus is executing.”
    In the recent Fox News Republican debate, Mr. Romney stated that if the surge is working, that American troops should begin to move into a support role, a transition he said should begin during spring 2008.
    The Democratic responses to the Petraeus report varied greatly from the Republican view.
    “Changing the definition of success to stay the course with the wrong policy is the wrong course for our troops and our national security,” Senator Barack Obama said during the Senate hearings.
On September 12, Mr. Obama announced his new plan for Iraq to “turn the page.” The plan includes an immediate withdrawal from Iraq that would be completed by early next year.
    “Let me be clear: There is no military solution in Iraq and there never was,” Mr. Obama said. He would instead like to create an “international working group” that would provide social services, monitor and prosecute war crimes perpetrated in Iraq, and help to create stability in Iraq. One of the central themes of Mr. Obama’s campaign is his ardent opposition to the war — a view he has held since 2002.
Mr. Romney attacked Mr. Obama’s plan, saying, “If we take the kind of left turn represented by Barack Obama and his flee-in-the-face-of-success strategy, we’d be in a very different position as a nation.”
    “General Petraeus has failed to give Congress an independent assessment of the Iraq War,” long-shot candidate Dennis Kucinich said. “His statement sounds like the president’s talking points. … Congress should not be mollified into accepting pre-surge troop levels. His talk of troop reductions is simply a dilatory tactic to mislead Congress. … The only worthy response is for Congress to demand the withdrawal of all troops.”
    Mr. Kucinich was the only member of Congress to vote against the resolution that honored the memory of those who lost their lives on September 11. He opposed the resolution because it did not consider “the lies that took us into Iraq, the lies that keep us there, the lies that are being used to set the stage for war against Iran, and the lies that have undermined our basic civil liberties here at home.” Even his hometown newspaper, The Morning Journal of Lorain, Ohio, called Representative Kucinich a “deluded moral gnat.”
    He also visited Syria earlier this month and appeared on Syrian television attacking the United States for its “illegal occupation of Iraq.” Representative Peter King excoriated his colleague: “You cannot have American congressmen, American senators going overseas to an enemy, which Syria is, and denouncing our policies.”
Republican candidates have been waiting for months for General Petraeus to give his testimony on the status of the surge. With his positive testimony it has allowed them to discuss more positively the future of Iraq and our need to help secure it.
    Mike Huckabee, the former Republican governor of Arkansas, reaffirmed his support of the war, saying in a recent debate, “We bought it because we broke it.”
Former Senator John Edwards attacked both President Bush and Congress this past week. He said of the president, “He is pressing on with the only Iraq strategy he has ever had—more time, more troops, and more war.”
“Enough is enough,” he continued. “The American people voted for change last November and 10 months later we still have the status quo. Congress must stand up to President Bush and pass a funding bill with a timetable for withdrawal.”
    Mr. Bush has asked General Petraeus and Ambassador Crocker to deliver another status update before Congress in March, the timing of which could prove pivotal as it coincides with the presidential primaries. The Iraq War debate may yet reach its political nadir.