Wexler: What would you ask Petraeus?

**Reposting, as we only got 45 responses yesterday. We will add those to what we get here.

Dear Friends,

As President Bush stubbornly refuses to change course in Iraq, it grows increasingly frustrating for those of us who have been loudly demanding a withdrawal.  I know you share my frustration. Every day, I receive letters and emails from patriotic Americans who want to - somehow – personally contribute to a solution.

Now it is your turn.

Next week, General Petraeus – the architect of the failed surge policy and our chief military leader in Iraq - will be testifying before the Committee on Foreign Affairs.

For too long the Bush Administration has been in a bubble – hiding from the truth and avoiding tough questions from outraged American citizens.  This time I am turning the oversight powers of Congress over to you.

I want you to be the ones asking the questions to General Petraus.

Write a comment and tell me what - specifically - you would like me to ask.  Please include your first name and your city and state.

I will choose the best two questions and ask them to General Petraeus this Wednesday.  You will be able to watch his answers directly on C-Span.

Please consider submitting a question.  You already work so hard to bring accountability to this Administration and to bring our troops home from Iraq.  I hope this provides you another opportunity for us to collaborate and directly influence the national dialogue.

Please keep your questions short and focused.

I look forward to your response, and thank you for participating directly in our democracy.

Congressman Robert Wexler
www.WexlerForCongress.com

•  Ask Him For His Resignation

  Petraeus is up to his beady eyeballs in Iraq malfeasance and corruption.  In Iraq, Petraeus is part of the problem, and he should be fired.

  by bincbom on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 08:32:05 AM PDT

•  Thanks Congressman Wexler

  The other day on Democracy Now, reporter, Nir Rosen gave a very different picture of the current state of Iraq than the Bush Administration is painting.

  Here's the link to the interview which might well suggest some probing questions:

  http://www.democracynow.org/...

  by eve on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 08:33:50 AM PDT

  •  After reading that article

    I can't think of a single productive question except "How soon can you clear out your office?"

    Thanks for the link, eve.

    by haremoor on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 08:46:00 AM PDT

    •  Alright, I can't wimp out that easy.

      I would like to see him asked what the linkage between contractors and our military commitment is.  Can we withdraw 2 brigades a month?  If we do, can the contractors be drawn down at the same numerical rate?  Can the contractors accomplish any of the reconstruction objectives, or can the Iraqi people/military/government restore the basic services?  Could we have a 'surge' to restore basic services?

      It seems to me that without water, food, electricity, medical, and municipal services, very little else will improve.

      Dale
      Phoenix, AZ

      by haremoor on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 09:05:27 AM PDT

•  "General..."

  "Every day there are stories of new violence, new casualties of our military and civilian losses...

  "Of this, General, why are we hearing the broken record line that the Surge is 'Working' and what constitutes 'working' in the sense that the surge is supposedly doign so?  What tangibly has changed?"

  by jpfdeuce on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 08:36:09 AM PDT

  •  Please Ask Him When The Iraqi People's Basic

    services, e. g. electricity, sewage control, hospitals, etc, will be restored to pre-Saddam levels.  

    Ask him about schools for Iraqi Children.  

    Ask him why American Soldiers killed and died bailing-out the Iraqi "Army" in Basra after Bush/Cheney said they wouldn't.

    Ask him why he lied about not knowing that Maliki was going full-frontal on al Sadr.  

    Please ask Petraeus why he's a Republican General, instead of an American General.

    And then, yes, please, ask for his resignation!

    by leonard145b on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 08:45:19 AM PDT

  •  Judgement Day

    Ask him how is he preparing to face God on
    judgement day?

    Day of judgement, God is calling
    On their knees, the war pigs crawling
    Begging mercy for their sins
    Satan, laughing, spreads his wings

               -Black Sabbath.

    Full lyrics here

    by gaf on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 09:30:19 AM PDT

•  My question would be

  General Petraus under what circumstances would you actually recommend the US to pull out of Iraq?  It is obvious at this point that we cannot be there forever.  We are either making things worse by staying or keeping things at a certain level.The last couple of weeks shows that when the Mahdi Army wants we actually don't really have much under control. So at what point can we say that we can leave the country and what are we really trying to accomplish?

  Thank you Congressman for stepping up and giving our point of view representation.  

  Steve
  Park Ridge NJ

  by skaye19 on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 08:46:48 AM PDT

  •  IOW, "What's the end game here?"

    How will we know when it's time for us to leave?  Be specific.

    by MajorFlaw on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 08:51:15 AM PDT

•  I already emailed you my question...

  but I'll post it here as well, hopefully giving me slightly better odds.  Maybe?

  Gen. Petraeus.  Please describe what exactly, and in detail, would be the point of "success" at which you feel we can begin to completely withdrawl all combat units from Iraq.

  by The BBQ Chicken Madness on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 08:54:14 AM PDT

•  I just wonder if

  this only got 45 responses because many people know it is pointless to ask a Bush flunky anything. Watching them lie and get by with it stopped having any entertainment value for me a long time ago.

  I am with other people who say just ask Petraeus to resign.

  by zett on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 08:55:37 AM PDT

  •  Problem is...

    Those who work in Bush's military know that they can either agree with Bush... or give up their careers.  Petraeus chose to keep his job, and gave up his integrity in the process.

    by Diogenes2008 on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 09:01:45 AM PDT

  •  More than that ...

    While I admire Congressman Wexler for his steadfast progressive politics, this Congress has been a huge disappointment in its abilities to hold the administration accountable or to stop the war.

    My questions, given this congress, would be:

    General Patraeus, how much money do you want this year? How soon do you want it?

    by Bronxist on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 09:41:33 AM PDT

•  I asked a few friends

  What they would ask Petraeus if they could, and one said this:

  "Fully realizing that you've taken an oath, is  your loyalty, sir, to the American people and your soldiers in the bloody streets of Iraq.....OR to Cheney and Bush ???? "

  by Diogenes2008 on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 08:56:40 AM PDT

•  Ask him why, if the surge is so much of a success

  and we are winning the war, then why aren't our troops coming home?  And better yet, what have we won?

  Why are we now sending more troops into Afghanistan?

  Why aren't our troops contracts for length of service being honored?

  Why is he lying through his teeth every time he opens his mouth about the mess in Iraq?

  Why hasn't he openly opposed Blackwater, KBR, and the many other contractors?

  There are many questions one could ask, but what would be the point?  The answers are always the same.

  Thanks, Congressman, for caring enough to want our input.

  Unfortunately, as Dick Cheney stated so very bluntly, the answer will be, "So?"

  by panicbean on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 08:57:08 AM PDT

•  Genral, is Caspian oil as tasty as Iraqi oil?

  by Kab ibn al Ashraf on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 09:11:49 AM PDT

•  Is Iraq being compared to Germany & Japan in 1945

  really an appropriate analogy?

  Isn't it true that Germany & Japan unconditionally surrendered to the US & its allies after 4 long years of war, while Iraq was a country we invaded and occupied as a result manipulated intelligence?

  Don't you think it's time for the president & politicians who continue comparing the two to stop insulting the greatest generation and those who helped rebuild Europe & Japan after WWII?

  Joshua E.
  NYC 10011

  PS:  I hope all my faxes aren't too much of an imposition, Rep. Wexler!

  ;-)

  by Junglered1 on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 09:15:47 AM PDT

•  Rec this diary

  For once one of our elected leaders is  genuinely interested in our input on an issue -- Iraq -- that is one of the most challenging issues of our times.  I was disappointed yesterday that so few people responded and that the diary did not stay up long.  Please kossacks, take a minute away from candidate diaries and rants and let's help Rep. Wexler gather the information he needs to ask Gen. Petraeus the tough questions.  We kossacks are fanatical followers of all things political and may have arcane knowledge about the Iraq situation that could help us frame a substantive question for Gen. Petraeus.  Let's do our part so Rep. Wexler can do his.

  *(I posted two questions yesterday.)

  by hummingbird4015 on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 09:18:18 AM PDT

  •  Duly rec'd eom

    by maxomai on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 10:02:19 AM PDT

•  General Petraeus,

  The occupation of Iraq and the surge has strained our military to the breaking point. We are issuing stop-losses because we cannot attract enough recruits to babysit a conflict between Sunni and Shia that began over a thousand years ago and will most likely continue a thousand years hence. We have been training Iraqis to take over their own security for five years now, and they are still not ready to do it—which begs the question of whether they will ever be ready. So, why, General, do you continue to recommend that our soldiers die in an operation that brings a tenuous security to Iraqis and zero security to Americans? Your oath is to protect and defend the United States of America, yet this occupation does neither. Why do you not recommend that we take care of the terrorists in Afghanistan and Pakistan, who are a threat to us, and then bring our men and women home?

  Kevin in Mesa, AZ

  by Finn MacCool on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 09:20:49 AM PDT

•  Two more questions

  Two more people have asked me to post questions for them:

  "I would ask him why he sold out on his doctrine in regards to fighting an insurgency for a top military position.  I would also ask him if his upcoming Iraqi report to congress would include the last three months of bloodshed in Iraq not just up until December."

  "Sir, How do you live with yourself , knowing how many humans have died as a direct result of your selling out?"

  by Diogenes2008 on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 09:27:35 AM PDT

•  I want to ask...

  ...why he's pushing for invading Iran after they negotiated a cease-fire that saved his troops from getting their asses caught in another civil war.

  I mean, isn't that kinda, you know, fucking stupid?

  by maxomai on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 09:30:23 AM PDT

  •  Okay

    I suppose I should elaborate.

    "General Petraeus: the British Media are reporting that you are apparently pushing for a war with Iran. Is this true? If so, why? More to the point, why are you pushing for war with a country that negotiated a cease-fire between the Sadr militia and the Iraqi government?"

    Mike from Portland Oregon.

    by maxomai on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 10:04:27 AM PDT

•  I did respond

  yesterday and again would like to hear General Petraeus answer the following questions;

  With your current plan, describe Iraq in one year?
  Two years?, 5 years? Who will be in control of the govt? What will our role be in one year,3 years,and 5 years? Show us the grand long term outcome and how we get there?

  What are the expectations for violence in Iraq this summer?

  What is the expected outcome of the fall elections in Iraq? Who will rise and fall in political power?
  Where do we fit in?

  Tell us the greatest threats to iraq right now? list them in order of threat and what percentage of our combat engagements are with each group.
  In other words, who are we fighting?

  Show us the road map to Iraqi political reconciliation? Who will emerge as the most powerful political forces in Iraq? Where does that leave us?

  What are the realistic numbers on solid Iraqi security forces? What will it take? How long to get there?

  Do you support the new GI bill?

  by Hawkjt on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 09:34:17 AM PDT

•  Anything I could ask you to ask him

  would be inappropriate for a Congressional hearing.

  But, the mildest thing I could think of to ask him would be how much he sold his oath to defend th Constitution of the United States and his honor and responsibility as a leader in the armed forces for.

  Then, I could get personal and insulting.

  by Moody Loner on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 09:36:00 AM PDT

  •  Exactly

    A friend asked me to post this question:

    "I would ask him the question what the good admiral who just retired called him.  Why are you the biggest ass kisser in the military?"

    As an outspoken man who does not suffer fools gladly, (Fallon) crossed swords with the White House more than once and was reported to be on extremely unfriendly terms with the top Army commander in Iraq General David Petraeus, whom he had reportedly disparaged as an "ass-kissing little chickenshit."

    A good question, but somehow I can't see Wexler asking that one... :)

    by Diogenes2008 on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 09:41:21 AM PDT

•  Have you been tasked with ending our occupation

  or merely maintaining it?  This question is aimed at defining the parameters of Gen. Petraeus' job in Iraq.  If we know he is trying to reach the end of the occupation that triggers a series of questions about how each of his acts brings us closer.  If we know he isn't trying we can ask him who is planning the withdrawal.

  by The Totalizer on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 09:38:32 AM PDT

  •  One additional question

    This one was asked long ago:  Has the escalation of troops in Iraq made the United States a safer place?  The General's answer may have changed since he last answered this question.
    David in Benicia, California.

    by The Totalizer on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 11:36:22 PM PDT

•  What has happened in the last six years

  that has justified the cost of this war to our military and our country?

  Our military is stretched to the breaking point.  We were told that our soldiers would stand down as the Iraq Army stood up.  Well, six years on, the Iraq army has not stood up, and has demonstrated that they never will.  They fight other militias just long enough to draw our soldiers and leave our men to die.  Our troops have no leave, and when they finally are allowed home they have no medical recourse for the mental and physical injuries they sustained in battle.  Meanwhile, our country is in a recession, and we are spending billions to train and equip the Iraqi soldiers that put our soldiers in harm's way.

  Given that, what has this occupation accomplished that justifies our continued presence in the region, the billions of dollars wasted, and the hundreds of thousands of lives lost and ruined?

  Mary
  Philadelphia, PA

  by mffarrow on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 09:40:01 AM PDT

•  Another one

  "General Petraeus, in your opinion, as a military man, what is the difference between a career soldier and a mercenary ????"

  by Diogenes2008 on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 09:51:36 AM PDT

•  Here are some questions

  http://www.chrisweigant.com/...

  It has been reported that solving the standoff with Muqtada al-Sadr in Najaf a few years ago meant cutting a deal with him. The United States reportedly paid over 300 million dollars to Sadr at that time. How much total money has America paid to Moqtada al-Sadr or any organization he controls? Are we still paying Sadr any money?

  How much money has been paid to the "Sunni Awakening" groups so far?

  How much more money is budgeted for paying these Awakening groups? When will these payments end, or will they continue on into the foreseeable future? What do you think will happen when we stop paying these groups?

  How many of these Sunnis have been accepted into the Iraq Army or national police forces? Or is Maliki blocking their path to becoming part of the national government's legitimate forces?

  Would you call the money we are paying these groups "protection money" or "bribes" paid so that they don't attack American forces? If the money stopped tomorrow, how many of them do you think would begin attacking our forces once again? Is this really a sustainable long-term strategy?

  by littlesky on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 09:55:33 AM PDT

  •  How rude of me - h/t to Fred in Vermont

    http://www.dailykos.com/...

    by littlesky on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 10:57:54 AM PDT

•  General Petraeus -

  If we win the war in Iraq, what exactly do we gain by winning?  Will we control, even if behind scenes, the flow of oil to market in Iraq?  We've lost 4014 of our young military in Iraq as I write here: what have we gained from their loss?

  And finally: How do I know you are not just a 'mouthpiece' for the administration?  Prove this suspicion wrong for me...

  Jacquie - Bandon, Oregon

  by Jbeaudill on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 10:00:12 AM PDT

•  Is there anything Bush wants you don't support?

  Or,

  1. Why do you think Bush has transferred, "retired", or "promoted" every military leader that has not enthusiastically agreed with his delusional Iraq policy?

  2. Do you understand that your career is over once Bush leaves office?

  3. Do you have any independent thoughts on Iraq that have not been carefully vetted by Bush's people?

  4. When did you decide to become a Republican party hack and stop being honest?

  5. Have you no sense of shame, sir?

  by skrymir on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 10:04:11 AM PDT

•  Arabic translators

  I would ask him if kicking out of the military the many gay service members who were Arabic translators has benefited the mission in Iraq.  If so, how?

  And if you want to expand, does he believe that if given a choice, would most soldiers rather serve an extra tour in Iraq or allow a gay soldier to remain in the service and fill that tour.

  Mike
  Columbus, OH

  by Scioto on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 10:31:19 AM PDT

•  I posed my question yesterday for him...

  ... "it sure does perplex me as to why so many contractors continue to profit from the war - appearing to be one of the driving forces behind us staying there. My questions:

     Does General Petraeus sincerely believe that our military is truly supported and made effective by our present system of contracting various services and duties out to for-profit companies? Does he feel that there has been sufficient oversight of all of the external companies doing business in the name of supporting our armed forces?"

  I would add: How can we fight any "war on terror" when there are so many people profiting on this disaster capital adventure and so many lies told to keep us mired in it up to our eyeballs?

  by Wide Awake in NJ on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 10:49:58 AM PDT

•  Background info for Rep. Wexler

  I've already posted two questions, but I also want to urge Rep. Wexler to read the testimony given to the Foreign Affairs Committee by three retired generals and another consultant regarding the situation in Iraq and the possible options for the U.S..  I watched the testimony on CSPAN on April 2, and it was riveting, stark, and bleak.  I am providing my summary below, which admittedly is incomplete and probably flawed by the fact that I was watching late at night -- but it kept me up to the wee hours.

  Please if you can obtain a copy of  the transcript of this hearing.  I have highlighted the areas that I think lend themselves to preparing your questions.

  CSpan was broadcasting a Senate committee hearing (Foreign Affairs? -- the one Biden chairs).

    The panel included retired generals Odom, McCaffrey, and I think Casey??, as well as a woman "MIcehle" whose last name I forget.  All of these thoughtful, experienced, expert analysts drew an incredibly bleak picture of the current situation, as well as of the remaining options for leaving Iraq.  n.

     The Senators asking questions included Biden, Kerry, Hagel, Luger, and others, who asked the panel to address whether there was any possibility of military success in Iraq, and asked them to define what success meant, and how they saw the current situation, how they assessed what would happen when we left, etc.

     Odom was the most bleak and pessimistic, but all seemed to share a very dark view.  They agreed that there was no way to avoid chaos and civil war after we left -- whether we left now or in 100 years.  They stated that this fiction that the Iraqi Security Forces were standing up was not true -- they stated that it wasn't that the ISF didn't know how to fight -- it was that they didn't have any loyalty to the central government.  The point was made that soldiers don't fight unless they have a commitment to what they are fighting for, and that these ISF have tribal and sectarian loyalties rather than any loyalty to a flag, and that until that changes, no progress will be possible.
  
     One of them -- I don't remember which of the generals stated that, in his opinion, within two years, Iraq would be governed by a "two-star general" with the strength to impose order -- in other words, another dictator, whether one better or worse than Saddam no one could know.

     The consensus was the Iraqi people don't care about democracy anywhere near as much as they are desperate for order.  The Iraqi women were cited as being particularly desperate for this to end, for safety and security to be restored.  They were looking to their own people, their tribe, their sect, etc. to give them the security of being able to come out of their houses and once again live relatively normal lives.  

     The idea that the Iraqis support Al Qaeda was absolutely debunked -- the majority shia population hates Al Qaeda, which is sunni.  The point was made over and over that Al Qaeda is in Iraq because we brought them there, and that they are much more entrenched in about 50 other countries of the world -- including cells in London, Spain, Indonesia, etc., and that our efforts in Iraq are hampering our ability to fight terrorism and enhancing Al_Q ability to recruit.

     The panel also said that it was beyond question that this administration would do nothing to address the issues or change course and that it was a foregone conclusion that the change would be under the direction of the new administration.

     One of the most striking statements made (I think by either Odom or McCaffrey) was that America's best hope and strongest potential ally in this process was IRAN  The point was made that Iran has probably the strongest interest in having a stable Iraq, without Al-Q and without a failed state, and that unless we not only talk to Iran but actually engage them in the process there is virtually no hope for stability in the region.  No one made any mention of preconditions, or Iran's support of insurgent militias, or any other reason to not talk to them.  To the contrary, it was suggested that without Iran there was little hope for stability.

     And that was the main issue that the panel said had to be our objective in Iraq -- not Democracy, not oil revenues, not spreading American ideals, but stability in the region.  And the point was made repeatedly that what this administration has done has completely destabilized  one of the most fragile and volatile regions on earth.  
  
     
  What struck me most of all was the terribly bleak tone of almost all the comments made, the feeling that things were spiraling downward, that the "surge" which had bought a little bit of "space" was simply not going to change the underlying dynamics.  The point was made that no one wants to fight for the Maliki government because everyone knows it will be a different government as soon as this process goes further.  

     They also talked about the incredible difficulties of withdrawing, how moving 140,000 troops and materiels was a herculean task that would leave them facing possible imploding situations such as happened to the French at Dien bien Phu and to others elsewhere.  

     They also talked about the suggestion that had been made (I'm not sure by whom) about withdrawing combat brigades while leaving American soldiers "embedded" as trainers with Iraqi forces, and how that was a recipe for slaughter for the Americans.  (The same reason that the sunnis don't join the ISF, because they fear being slaughtered by these shia forces.)

  by hummingbird4015 on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 11:13:41 AM PDT

  •  That was an outstandig

    and sobering hearing. I just saw parts of it again, it's still on on CSPAN right now, maybe they will reply it again later. Strongly recommended. Very telling how practically all republicans in the SFRC, not only Lugar and Hagel, were practically acknowledging that not only we are still in a mess, surge or no surge, but finally agreeing that there are no good options left. The generals all agreeing that we must get out, but no agreement as to how to do it.

    by mangusta on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 02:40:01 PM PDT

•  Great info, thanks -nt

  by Scioto on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 12:45:06 PM PDT

•  more questions

  How have our efforts in Iraq made us safer? How do we expect our presence in Iraq will make us safer in the long run?

  (channeling Barack Obama)

  Mary
  Philadelphia, PA

  by mffarrow on Sat Apr 05, 2008 at 08:09:25 PM PDT

•  I tried to keep it alive, Congressman.

  There are more comments here.

  by haremoor on Sun Apr 06, 2008 at 07:17:47 PM PDT

•  just ask

  How do you define victory or success or mission accomplished?

  When do you think this will happen?

  If you don't know, how long should we keep on trying?

  If you can't answer these questions concretely, why should the American people support this war?

  Ramona
  East Lansing, MI

  by fernan47 on Mon Apr 07, 2008 at 02:14:22 PM PDT