Obama Renews Pressing Grassley on Iraq

Democratic presidential hopeful U.S. Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., greets potential supporters before speaking at a town hall meeting, Thursday, May 10, 2007, in Indianola, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall) (Charlie Neibergall - AP)

INDIANOLA, Iowa -- Democratic presidential contender Barack Obama stepped up his pressure on Republican Sen. Charles Grassley on Thursday, arguing voters should urge the Iowa lawmaker to help override President Bush's veto of a bill that would set a timetable for withdrawing troops from Iraq.

Obama addressed the issue during the eighth campaign swing through Iowa since he declared his candidacy for president.

"It isn't personal," Obama told about 300 people at a town hall meeting at Simpson College. "I respect him greatly. But I said then and I say now that he needs to hear from you and people across Iowa who understand that it's time to change course."

Obama has made his opposition to the war in Iraq a central theme of his campaign.

Congress passed a measure that would provide additional funds for the war, but Bush vetoed it because it also contained a timeline for bringing the troops home.

"We need 16 Republican votes in the Senate to overturn the veto," said Obama. "I said on Sunday that one of the senators we need to persuade is from right here in Iowa."

Grassley has rejected the suggestion that he can be pressured on the issue, saying Obama, an Illinois senator, is violating traditions of the institution by traveling to another state and publicly applying pressure to a colleague. He has labeled that step "not senatorial" and said he had no intention of voting to override the veto.

Obama said he has not overstepped his grounds, saying those senatorial traditions pale before the magnitude of the war.

"This isn't about Washington etiquette, it's about bringing our troops home," said Obama. "This is how real change happens in America. This isn't symbolic, this is real."

Obama cited recent reports that Republican members of Congress have conceded they're losing faith in the Iraq strategy. Democrats control Congress, but only narrowly, and Obama said Americans should pressure GOP lawmakers to oppose the war.

"It's already working," said Obama, who has also traveled to Louisiana and Virginia to urge voters to pressure their elected leaders. "That's why 11 Republican Congressmen went to the White House yesterday and demanded honesty and accountability from the president on Iraq."

Obama said he first spoke out against war in 2002, and he vowed to continue pressing on the issue.

"I'm making the same point wherever I go," said Obama. "This is how we're going to bring our troops home _ by building a bipartisan coalition the president can't ignore."

Mary Tiffany, a spokeswoman for the Republican Party of Iowa, said Obama looks foolish when he seeks to pressure a veteran such as Grassley.

"Senator Grassley has served the people of Iowa for over 30 years, while Senator Obama has served the people of Illinois for two years," Tiffany said. "A comment like that just goes to show his lack of experience and poor judgment."