Bush fights to control Iraq strategy

http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0712/p01s01-usfp.html

Bush fights to control Iraq strategy
A rising chorus in Congress to cut short the 'surge' has mobilized the administration.
By Howard LaFranchi | Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor

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WASHINGTON - Caught off guard by a rapid deterioration in support for the Iraq war, the White House is scrambling to give the president's "surge" strategy the time he thought it had – and to preserve executive-branch control of Iraq policy.

President Bush had expected Congress to hold off on any judgment of the strategy involving a US force buildup in Iraq until the delivery of a comprehensive report on the strategy's performance in September. But with an interim assessment demanded by Congress arriving by the end of this week – and coinciding with deliberations over a defense authorization bill – it's suddenly September in July in Washington.

With Mr. Bush at risk of seeing a restive Congress begin to place limits on Iraq policy, the administration is fighting back. The president has gone on the stump, saying he, too, has plans for eventually drawing down the number of troops in Iraq, but warning of the consequences for America's security if the US changes the current course too soon. The White House is focused on shoring up support among Senate Republicans, with National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley visiting Capitol Hill this week.

The pushback is following two lines of attack: one, that the presence of some 30,000 additional troops is beginning to bear fruit, even if not among the "benchmarks" set by Congress when it approved Iraq funding in May; and that members of Congress are allowing political motivations to trump long-term security priorities.

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