DEMS STANDING THEIR GROUND ON IRAQ

I was a little encouraged by the new found determination of House Democrats to insist that there be timetables in return for more Iraq war funding and Sen. Levin appeared on FAUX News Sunday¹ and seemed to be sticking with the demand. I didn't realize until now that the Democrats' amendment was non-binding.

Here's the relevant parts of the transcript:

SEN. CARL LEVIN (D), MICHIGAN: Well, it shows an improvement on the military side, but the president's policy very specifically had as its purpose -- the surge's purpose was to give the Iraqi political leaders the breathing space to work out a political settlement, and that purpose has not been achieved.

They're just as far apart as ever. And I think there's a growing frustration with the Maliki government, even among our own military leaders, for the Maliki government's failure to make political improvements. That growing frustration is reflected in a State Department bulletin that just came out which said that the greatest threat which now exists in Iraq is no longer Al Qaida, it is not the insurgency of the Sunni insurgency, it is not the militias.

LEVIN: It was the Maliki government themselves that a year ago adopted the so-called benchmarks that they would have revenue sharing by a year ago, that they would have provincial elections by about a year ago.

They failed to meet their own benchmarks. And just to continue to say that if they don't do something by a certain date that then we'll take some action to put pressure on them is the mark of a lack of pressure.

You've got to put pressure on them now, and the way to do it is to set a goal, which is what we had in our last vote, just simply a goal for the removal of most American forces from Iraq.
That even got support from the former military commander, Governor -- I mean, General Sanchez, over the weekend, who supported the effort to set a goal -- not a binding deadline, but a goal -- for the removal of most American troops, leaving a number there for the limited missions.

That's what we must do to put pressure on the Maliki government and not to change the benchmarks.

That article in the New York Times was deeply disturbing. That the administration might consider eliminating these benchmarks that have been set by the Maliki government for themselves it just seems to me is trying to make something look successful which is not.
We need pressure on the Maliki government. Hang on to the benchmarks that they set for themselves and set a non-binding goal, at a minimum, for the removal of most American troops.

The greatest threat to any success in Iraq is the failure of the Iraqi politicians to work out their political differences.

LEVIN: We're going to fund the troops. We're not going to cut funding for the troops. The bill that we had a majority for in the Senate that was filibustered by the Republicans would have provided funding for the troops for the months that you indicated but also would have said that we would establish a goal for the removal of most American troops by the end of next year.

It was not a binding goal. It was simply a goal. And the refusal of this administration and the support of this administration's refusal by that filibuster by the Republicans in the Senate sends exactly the wrong message to the leaders of Iraq, that somehow or other, we're not going to put pressure on them to do what they promised to do.

I think that's a terrible message to them. It's the wrong message to our troops and to the American people, who say that we've been there now 4.5 years, it is time to at least have a goal.
Why in the name of heaven are we not willing to at least establish a goal for the removal of most of our troops that's not binding?

¹Fox News Network
November 25, 2007 Sunday
SHOW: FOX NEWS SUNDAY 9:00 AM EST
Interview With Carl Levin, Lindsey Graham
BYLINE: Chris Wallace
GUESTS: Lindsey Graham, Carl Levin
SECTION: NEWS; Domestic
LENGTH: 1700 words