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From the GOP, the General Gets Unfriendly Fire

Gen. David Petraeus: Hostile questioning from a new source. (By Melina Mara -- The Washington Post)
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"I think all of us, certainly I, feel very strongly that the Iraqi government needs to do more," Rep. John McHugh (R-N.Y.) advised Petraeus and Crocker when they appeared before the Armed Services Committee in the morning.

"None of us like the cost of this," added Rep. Terry Everett (R-Ala.).

"Is our presence in Iraq equivalent to a temporary plug in a hole in the dike?" inquired Rep. Roscoe Bartlett (R-Md.).

Rep. Randy Forbes (R-Va.) spoke of constituents struggling with higher gas prices and wondering if "Iraq is worth $608 billion to us. How do we answer the housewife, factory worker?"

There were lawmakers who remained as devoted to Petraeus as they were last September. Rep. Joe Wilson (R-S.C.) went through his family tree as he expressed his own gratitude and that of his four sons and his grandchildren -- including one who "will be born this weekend."

But the reception for Petraeus only worsened in the afternoon before the House Foreign Affairs Committee. Rep. Gary Ackerman (D-N.Y.) taunted the general with a variation on a World War I song. "We're there because we're there because we're there because we're there, and it never ends," the congressman said. "I'd liken your job to that of Sisyphus."

With polls showing that two-thirds of Americans regard the war as a mistake, even such a stalwart as Rep. Dan Burton (R-Ind.) had to acknowledge that "right now, the war is very unpopular."

Politely, Flake reminded Petraeus and Crocker that Congress could cut off funds for the war. "We do have the power of the purse, and we desperately want to see success, but a lot of us are concerned," he said.

Rohrabacher wasn't quite so delicate. If Iraqis don't pay for their security, he threatened, "there's going to be trouble on the Republican side, as well as the Democratic side, of getting support for an ongoing conflict."

It was a tough day for the general. If it's any consolation, the Madam's day was worse.

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