General Petraeus's testimony regarding the White House's report is coming up, and I have several Yes, No, or I don't know questions that I think should be asked.
Now, it would be best if one Senator would take it upon him or herself to just do these one-after-the-other with the following instructions:
"General Petraeus, you will answer my questions with Yes, No, or I don't know. You will not elaborate upon your answers unless I ask you to."
Questions below the fold.
It has been apparent that this administration is playing with the numbers to make it appear that the surge has been a success. Questions should be asked simply and directly to cut through the bullshit so that spinning can be kept to a minimum.
Keep in mind, these questions don't need to be asked in this particular order, it's just the order I came up with them.
On average, are more American soldiers being killed in Iraq this year than last??
The answer to this question should be yes.
Has the number of Iraqis killed in car bombs increased since the surge began?
I wasn't able to find any statistics on this.
Will the Iraqi Army be capable of contributing to the defense of their country in the next year?
The answer is a resounding no.
Has the number of Iraqi civilians killed through violent acts increased since January?
According to Josh Marshall and the AP, yes.
Is the trend that, aside from a clear spike in the spring, those numbers are increasing?
Same answer as above.
Could Iraqi deaths be lower because over 10% of the population has been displaced?
This is one I'd probably let him elaborate on, because I've yet to hear the military address this issue. I could have just missed it, though.
Why are car bombs excluded from reports of Iraqi violance?
Obviously a question that requires a detailed answer, but I would think that death by car bomb could qualify as a violent death.
Does the Iraqi Health Ministry provide full and accurate data to the United States regarding civilian casualties?
They don't to the UN or other humanitarian agencies.
Why doesn't the Iraqi Health Ministry provide civilian casualty data to the United Nations?
He'd probably answer with "I'm not party to the policies of the Iraqi Ministries." or something similar.
Is the Iraqi police force an effective ally in combating sectarian and non-sectarian voilence?
The answer to this question, of course, is most certainly not.