Petraeus/Crocker Talk Progress, Democrats Talk Defeat

April 8, 2008 · Filed Under General Petraeus, Iraq War, Troop Surge, U.S. News

The much anticipated appearance of Gen. Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker kicked off today, with the first of 2 scheduled hearings today having just concluded.

It was fairly predictable, with Republicans listening to what Petraeus/Crocker had to say about the current state of things in Iraq. No sane person can at this point deny the very significant progress that’s been made since the surge began, unless of course your a liberal Democrat.

Democrats on the panel of course tried to get Petraeus to say the mission wasn’t worth it and to say the the current policy in Iraq is a failure. He was of course unable to say those things given the fact that neither of them are true.

Gen. Petraeus went on to lay out his plan going forward, which included recommending a 45-day “period of consolidation and evaluation” once the extra combat forces that President Bush ordered to Iraq last year have completed their pullout in July. He did not commit to a timetable for resuming troop reductions after the 45-day pause.

“At the end of that period, we will commence a process of assessment to examine the conditions on the ground and, over time, determine when we can make recommendations for further reductions,” Petraeus said.

“This process will be continuous, with recommendations for further reductions made as conditions permit,” he added. “This approach does not allow establishment of a set withdrawal timetable. However, it does provide the flexibility those of us on the ground need to preserve the still fragile security gains our troopers have fought so hard a sacrificed so much to achieve.”

President Bush has said he intended to accept Petraeus’ recommendation. On Thursday, the president will make a speech about the war and give further details.

-Chris Jones