In some way he will move the goal posts. (0.00 / 0)

He will explain we have to give Iraq more time-- say until election day 08.

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by: bluethunder @ Fri Apr 04, 2008 at 14:01:10 PM UTC

Happy Happy Joy Joy (0.00 / 0)

We just have to keep believing, or Tinkerbelle will die.

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by: Tom @ Fri Apr 04, 2008 at 14:02:07 PM UTC

Praise (0.00 / 0)

Let's be sure to shower him with praise while he lies to us.  There's 140,000 troops who would be demoralized if he have an open public debate.

Our Dime Understanding the U.S. Budget

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by: dmineau @ Fri Apr 04, 2008 at 14:09:21 PM UTC

General Kickthecanus (0.00 / 0)

He'll announce he saw his shadow meaning 6 more months of surge (followed by another 6 more months and another unless Obama is elected...).

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by: redwards95 @ Fri Apr 04, 2008 at 14:48:02 PM UTC

Agh (4.00 / 1)

If the situation were reversed, the Republicans would already be laying the groundwork to discredit him, and then have one or multiple narratives prepared, depending on his testimony, to unleash as soon is it is over.

What do Pelosi and Reid have? I don't even want to imagine the lameness our aspiring presidents will say. Maybe that he is an honorable man but the respectfully disagree?

This will be a test of how well progressive foreign policy types and new media types and legislators can coordinate together. My guess is they will fail pretty miserably.

I support John McCain because children are too healthy anyway.

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by: Sam L @ Fri Apr 04, 2008 at 14:54:37 PM UTC

Let's not screw it up again (0.00 / 0)

Let's face it. Last time we allowed the table to be turned and MoveOn was the issue.

That pretty much sucked the life out of any chance of getting the troops home for the rest of the Congress.

Let's not let Petraeus do that again.

John McCain: Beacuse lobbyists should have more power

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by: Populista @ Fri Apr 04, 2008 at 16:30:50 PM UTC

Just call him a liar (0.00 / 0)

The Betrayus thing didn't work. It was a cheap pun, betray had the wrong connotations and it was too easily used to cover up the real issue.

This time, let's not be clever. Let's just say that he's a liar, or at best a delusional fool, then release a document containing all the reasons why that is the case.

The wingnuts will howl and scream as much as before, but provided we keep it to the specific facts where Petraeus is lying (and provided the attack is launched after the testimony, so that it directly intersects with the reporting of that) they'll find themselves in an argument over specifics, which they really don't want to have.

Forgotten Countries - a foreign policy-focused blog

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by: Englishlefty @ Fri Apr 04, 2008 at 16:58:01 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Organize a List of Questions to Ask (4.00 / 1)

David Corn at Mother Jones (I don't have the link) asked a bunch of experts what questions they would ask Petraeus. Find a way to generate a set of five to ten questions that could be asked repeatedly, to focus the debate. Some possibilities: This was done through YouTube for the debates, so repeat. The Out of Iraq Caucus. The candidates behind the "Responsible Plan." A united blog effort at picking key questions, or Open Left and Daily Kos. The idea would be to introducde them as "I am here as a representative of the American people. These are the five [ten] quesions that many Americans want answers to." And then have a half dozen members of Congress commit themselves to ask him those basic questions (in their own words so it's not completely repetitive).

The questions might include:

(1) You said in your last appearance in September that you weren't sure whether the Iraq War was making the United States safer. How would you answer that now that you've had eight months to think about it?

(2) The goal of the surge was to improve the security climate so that political reconciliation could happen. How does the recent fighting between Shiite groups promote those political goals?

(3) When do you think the United States will be able to leave Iraq? Under what criteria would you judge that we have been successful?

(4) If more than two thirds of Iraqis want us to leave within a year, and a slight majority, according to some polls, support attacks on U.S. forces, what good can we actually do in that country?

(5) The Army and the Marines have said that our forces are overcomitted and stressed in Iraq. When can you tell the families of our troops in Iraq that they will be able to have the two years off between combat missions that  military rules require?

(6) The argument for announcing a withdrawal timeline is that it forces the Iraqi government and factions to begin making the political compromises that are needed. The surge has failed to do that, except in limited ways. What's wrong, then, with setting a withdrawal timeline, which many people believe can accomplish those goals? (And if that's a political question that a general can't answer, then shouldn't we be talking to someone in the administration that can answer it?)

(7) Why should Congress allocate $100 billion more to this war when the surge has not met the goals it was established to achieve?

And so forth.          

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by: johnraymond @ Fri Apr 04, 2008 at 19:04:32 PM UTC