Congress report says violence stays high in Iraq

"It will be more useful to look forward to the testimony of Ambassador Crocker and General Petraeus next week, as well as the president's report, for a more thorough picture of the current status in Iraq and recommendations for the future," he said.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Nevada Democrat who wants U.S. troops out of Iraq, said Bush's strategy failed.

"According to the president, when he set forth his escalation policy the purpose of the troop increase was to give the Iraqis space and safety ... to build a sustainable government to provide for their own security. None of this has happened," Reid said on the Senate floor.

Reid hopes that Republicans who have expressed doubts about Iraq recently will join Democrats in bipartisan proposals to change course.

Virginia Republican Sen. John Warner said last month Bush should start withdrawing some troops by Christmas.

"Even President Bush understands that the current surge will not last forever," Indiana Republican Sen. Richard Lugar said on Tuesday.

Petraeus and Crocker are expected to emphasize improvements in areas such as Anbar -- a former insurgent stronghold where Sunni leaders now work with U.S. forces against al Qaeda militants -- and ask for more time for the strategy to work.

There are 160,000 troops currently in Iraq. Since the United States invaded Iraq in March 2003, over 3,700 U.S. forces and tens of thousands of Iraqis have been killed.