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Harry Reid: Iraq war 'is lost' 
Senate Democrat leader says surge 'not accomplishing anything'

The war in Iraq "is lost" and a US troop surge is failing to bring peace to the country, the leader of the Democratic majority in the US Congress, Harry Reid, said Thursday.

"I believe ... that this war is lost, and this surge is not accomplishing anything, as is shown by the extreme violence in Iraq this week," Reid told journalists.

Reid said he had delivered the same message to US President George W. Bush on Wednesday, when the US president met with senior lawmakers to discuss how to end a standoff over an emergency war funding bill.

"I know I was the odd guy out at the White House, but I told him at least what he needed to hear ... I believe the war at this stage can only be won diplomatically, politically and economically."

Congress is seeking to tie funding for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to a timetable to withdraw US troops from Iraq next year, but Bush has vowed to veto any such bill and no breakthrough was reported from the White House talks.

Bush on Thursday was addressing an Ohio town hall meeting and defending the war on terror launched in the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks.

"It is the most solemn duty of our country, is to protect our country from harm," Bush told the invited audience in Tipp, Ohio.

"A lesson learned was that -- at least in my opinion -- that in order to protect us, we must aggressively pursue the enemy and defeat them elsewhere so that we do not have to face them here."

But Reid drew a parallel with former US president Lyndon Johnson who decided to deploy more troops in Vietnam some 40 years ago when 24,000 US troops had already been killed.

"Johnson did not want a war loss on his watch, so he surged in Vietnam. After the surge was over, we added 34,000 to the 24,000 who died in Vietnam," Reid said.

The comments came a day after bombers killed more than 200 people in a slew of car bombings in Baghdad, dealing a savage blow to the US security plan which aims to deploy an extra 30,000 troops in the country to quell sectarian unrest.

US Defense Secretary Robert Gates fly into Iraq Thursday on an unannounced visit for talks with top US military commanders there.

He met with General David Petraeus, chief of coalition forces in Iraq, his deputy Lieutenant Colonel Ray Odierno and Admiral William Fallon, chief of US forces in the Middle East.

Yes, they did add more Troops then. As now they didn't provide the necessary tools by providing sufficient funding for them.

Bush answers Reid, says Iraq surge working
President disputes Senate leader's claim 'war is lost'

President Bush said Friday that his revised military strategy was taking hold in Iraq and "the direction of the fight is beginning to shift," even as he acknowledged "horrific" bombings that killed more than 200 people in Baghdad this week.

"So far, the operation is meeting expectations," Bush said of the boost in U.S. troops he ordered and the new focus on improving security in Baghdad neighborhoods.

The president said the number of sectarian attacks in the capital had declined by half since the stepped-up efforts began.

But Bush also said, "We have seen some of the highest casualty levels of the war."

And he cautioned that as more troops arrive to conduct more military maneuvers, "we can expect the pattern to continue."

In taking note of the deadly Baghdad bombings on Wednesday, Bush suggested a link between the violence and Al Qaeda terrorists.

While conceding there was no specific intelligence tying the bombings to Al Qaeda, he said, "the men who attacked Iraqis … swear allegiance to the same network" that assaulted the United States on 9/11."

"This was hardly a random act of murder," Bush said of the explosions in Baghdad. "It has all the hallmarks of an Al Qaeda attack. The terrorists bombed … at rush hour with a specific intent to kill as many people as possible."

His remarks echoed controversial assertions he made during the walk-up to the war in Iraq more than four years ago, when Bush and his aides spoke of ties between the government of dictator Saddam Hussein and Al Qaeda.

Bush has since said there was no evidence of such connections.

Bush's speech was his second sustained effort in two days to rebuild flagging support for the war by making his case in Republican communities where he has found friendly audiences.

On Thursday, he spoke in Tipp City, Ohio, a small town represented in Congress by House Minority Leader John A. Boehner.

On Friday, the president spoke at East Grand Rapids High School to an audience of about 500 people; most were members of the Western Michigan World Affairs Council, an organization that promotes discussion of foreign policy.

Nearby Grand Rapids was the hometown of the late President Ford, and Bush's host pointed out that East Grand Rapids was the home of the late Sen. Arthur Vandenberg, a Republican who fought isolationism and promoted bipartisanship in American foreign policy in the mid-20th century.

Bush's appearance came the day after Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) attracted widespread notice by saying at a news conference that he believed the war "is lost."

Reid continued his criticism of Bush's Iraq policy Friday, saying in a Senate speech, "The longer we continue down the president's path, the further we will be from responsibly ending this war."

He called on Bush to stop "partisan attacks," abandon his "failed strategy" and "recognize the reality on the ground in Iraq."

Bush and the Democrats who control Congress are deadlocked over the administration's request for about $103 billion in emergency funding for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Democrats want to attach language to the bill that, at the least, commits the U.S. to goals for withdrawing troops from Iraq.

Some Democrats want stronger provisions that set specific deadlines.

Bush has repeatedly said he would veto any measure that, in his view, infringed on his prerogatives as commander-in-chief.

Both Thursday and Friday, Bush spoke for about an hour and a half, delivering a nearly 45-minute speech and then responding to questions.

Bush said U.S. and Iraqi forces had received more tips about terrorist and insurgent hideouts in the last three months than in any previous three-month period. He also said seizures of weapons had increased.

"Day by day, block by block, Iraqi and American forces are making incremental gains in Baghdad," he said.

But he also said that in some cases, insurgents have shifted their operations outside the city.

And he said that Anbar Province, a stronghold for Sunni insurgents in western Iraq, "still is not safe."

About 12,000 U.S. troops have been added under Bush's plan; the increase is expected to total more than 20,000. That would bring the number of U.S. forces in Iraq to about 160,000.

It's a rather dubious position to be in for the Democrats.   They find themselves basically rooting for a U.S. failure.   

Hi Keltoi,

Welcome to Christians Unite.

Yes, I think the democrats may have quite a few hard lessons ahead if they will just learn from them.

Now what makes you think they will learn from them this time around?

Yeah, I should have made that "IF" a whole lot bigger.

 ;D ;D