Iraq Hearings in the Senate

General David Petraeus testified in front of two Senate committees yesterday alongside Ambassador to Iraq, Ryan Crocker. Today, the pair will face the House of Representatives.

The pair talked about their recommendations for the future of the military in Iraq and discussed their assessment of the situation. They faced questions from members of the committees, some tough, others not so tough.

The hearings certainly hosted a clash of ideologies and strategies for the war in Iraq, yet as the LA Times pointed out , "...there was no real decision at stake: President Bush is expected Thursday to endorse Petraeus' recommendation for a suspension of withdrawals in July, insisting that security gains over the last 15 months can lead toward a sustainable future, with continued U.S. help."

Among the questioners were all three of the Presidential nominees. Appropriately, most primary politics stayed out of the hearing, though each candidate tried to take the opportunity to stake their stance on Iraq more clearly.

McCain, the highest ranking Republican, was the only presidential candidate that got to make an opening speech before taking his time for questions.

For me, of the parts I saw live, Senator Edward Kennedy had the quote of the day: "A year ago, the president said we couldn't withdraw because there was too much violence. Now he says we can't afford to withdraw because violence is down."