No Closer to Success in Iraq

Petraeus Watch

Michael Abramowitz writes in The Washington Post that Bush administration debate over how quickly to reduce the number of U.S. troops in Iraq came to a quick end at Camp Arifjan, an Army base near the Iraqi border in Kuwait, in January: "During an 80-minute session, the president questioned his top commander in Iraq on whether further troop reductions, beyond those planned through July, would compromise security gains. According to officials familiar with the exchange, Petraeus said he wanted to wait until the summer to evaluate conditions -- and Bush made it clear he would support him and take any political heat.

"'My attitude is, if he didn't want to continue the drawdown, that's fine with me,' Bush said before television cameras later, with Petraeus standing by his side. 'I said to the general: "If you want to slow her down, fine; it's up to you." '

"In the waning months of his administration, Bush has hitched his fortunes to those of his bookish four-star general, bypassing several levels of the military chain of command to give Petraeus a privileged voice in White House deliberations over Iraq, according to current and former administration officials and retired officers. . . .

"Bush's reliance on Petraeus has made other military officials uneasy, has rankled congressional Democrats and has created friction that helped spur the departure last month of Adm. William J. 'Fox' Fallon, who, while Petraeus's boss as chief of U.S. Central Command, found his voice eclipsed on Iraq. . . .

"'It is part of Bush's overall management style -- to cede responsibility to a lower level and not look carefully at critical issues himself,' said Kenneth Adelman, a Reagan-era official who has parted company with such longtime friends as Rumsfeld and Vice President Cheney over the war. 'Originally on Iraq, it was whatever Rumsfeld wanted. Then it was whatever Jerry Bremer did,' he said, referring to the former Coalition Provisional Authority chief. 'And now it is whatever Petraeus wants.'"

Demetri Sevastopulo writes in the Financial Times: "General David Petraeus, the top US commander in Iraq who hinted months ago that he wanted to halt troop reductions after the 'surge' was unwound this summer, will be under pressure on Tuesday to provide details about the 'pause' when he appears before lawmakers in Congress.

"The length of the pause will determine how many US troops remain in Iraq when the next president takes office. Many experts expect to see more US soldiers in Iraq in January 2009 than two years earlier, when President George W. Bush ordered a surge of 30,000 additional forces.

"Speculation about the length of the pause ranges from several weeks to several months."

And the White House fully realizes how important Petraeus's testimony will be. Carl Hulse writes in the New York Times: "Senior Republican officials have met at the White House to synchronize strategies. . . .

"House Republicans are coordinating with conservative bloggers and will invite conservative radio commentators to broadcast from Washington. Republicans plan to push for new money for troops in Iraq; to highlight statements by Democrats that the troop 'surge,' which ended last fall, has worked; to point out some signs of political reconciliation; and to insist that troops can be removed from Iraq only when military leaders decide it is the proper time.

"'The goal of the effort is not just to reinforce the message delivered by General Petraeus, but to launch a full-fledged assault on the misinformation campaign promoted by Democratic leaders who have lost every time they have tried to legislate defeat for America,' said an internal strategy memo for Republican communications operatives."

Dissenting Views Within the Pentagon

Peter Spiegel and Julian E. Barnes write in the Los Angeles Times: "Inside the Pentagon, a contingent of senior officers -- including members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff -- has long pushed for a faster drawdown of forces to relieve stress on the Army and to meet needs elsewhere, particularly in Afghanistan.