US Republicans hammer Democrats on Iraq...avoided major gaffes

US Republicans hammer Democrats on Iraq

Wed Jun 6, 1:55 AM ET

MANCHESTER, United States (AFP) - US Republican presidential hopefuls hammered Democrats on Iraq Tuesday and began to split with beleaguered President George W. Bush, in their third 2008 campaign debate.

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Leading candidates Senator John McCain (news, bio, voting record), former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney and the ex-mayor of New York Rudolph Giuliani avoided major gaffes, and none of the long-shot contenders appeared to break out.

"The Democrats are in denial," said Giuliani, adding that the US decision to invade Iraq in 2003 was "absolutely the right thing to do."

"It's unthinkable to leave Saddam Hussein in charge of Iraq and be able to fight the war on terror."

"When Senator Clinton says this is Mr. Bush's war, that this is President Bush's war -- when President Clinton was in power, I didn't say that Bosnia, our intervention there was President Clinton's war."

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Romney condemned Democratic Senate Majority leader Harry Reid (news, bio, voting record) for his comment last month that "the war in Iraq is lost."

"Harry Reid was wrong. We did not lose the war in Iraq. And that's not the sort of thing you say when you have men and women in harm's way," Romney said.

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