久久亚洲国产成人影院-久久亚洲国产的中文-久久亚洲国产高清-久久亚洲国产精品-亚洲图片偷拍自拍-亚洲图色视频

  Home>News Center>World
         
 

Democrats move to exploit Iraq missteps
(AP)
Updated: 2005-11-05 18:23

Democrats are intensifying efforts to hold President Bush and his fellow Republicans accountable for missteps in the Iraq war, as they seek to exploit a potential GOP vulnerability heading into Congress' midterm election year.

Outnumbered on Capitol Hill, Democrats are embracing the little power they have in the GOP-controlled House and Senate by using procedural techniques to highlight Iraq troubles and issue blistering critiques of Bush's war policies.

At the same time, increasing numbers of Democrats are calling for the president to start withdrawing U.S. troops by year's end and are laying out their own timetables for pulling out of the war-battered country.

"What the Democrats are saying essentially is, enough is enough. It's time to determine the facts and to hold the president accountable for the miscalculations, misjudgments and misrepresentations," said Steve McMahon, a Democratic consultant.

On Tuesday, Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid of Nevada surprised and infuriated Republicans by invoking an arcane Senate rule to force the chamber into closed session for more than two hours on Iraq and prewar intelligence.

Two days later, Reid's counterpart in the House, Rep. Nancy Pelosi (news, bio, voting record) of California, tried unsuccessfully to get the GOP-controlled chamber to take up a measure condemning Republicans for "their refusal to conduct oversight" of the administration's Iraq war policy and order investigations into it.

In both cases, Democrats say Republican leaders have put political interests ahead of national security by failing in their oversight responsibilities of the Iraq war.

Republicans dismissed the actions as political stunts and accused Democrats of trying to steal news headlines from Bush's nomination of Samuel Alito to the Supreme Court.

Sen. John Cornyn (news, bio, voting record), R-Texas, said Senate Democrats were going "to extraordinary and unprecedented measures to obstruct the business of the American people. Because the Democrats have no ideas or agenda of their own, they've made an awkward attempt at changing the subject."

The Democrats' stepped-up campaign coincides with Bush's popularity plummeting to its lowest levels ever, with a new AP-Ipsos poll placing his approval rating at 37 percent.

It also coincides with two other high-profile events — the grim milestone of 2,000 U.S. military deaths in Iraq and the indictment of I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, Vice President Dick Cheney's former chief of staff, in a case that touched on intelligence the president used in the run-up to the war.

Democrats say that gave them an opening to more aggressively press the administration to outline a plan for withdrawal and demand that Congress complete a stalled investigation into prewar intelligence.

Like Republicans, Democrats also have been feeling the heat from their constituents, who are growing increasingly frustrated with the war as casualties climb and costs soar. AP-Ipsos polling shows public support for Bush's handling of Iraq at its lowest point, also 37 percent.

Democrats hope aggressively pushing Bush on Iraq will unify their party and fracture Republicans by forcing GOP candidates to decide whether to stand with the president or distance themselves from him and his policies.

The minority party also is using its intensified effort on Iraq to raise money.

"Make a special donation and send a note of thanks to Harry Reid asking him to keep up the fight," said a fundraising e-mail from Democratic National Committee chairman Howard Dean, sent out the day of the closed Senate session.

In coming weeks, House Democrats, led by Rep. John Murtha (news, bio, voting record) of Pennsylvania, plan to force the House to consider a Senate-approved ban on the "cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment" of prisoners in U.S. custody. Members of both parties expect the House to side with the Senate, despite a White House veto threat.

A former Marine who served in Vietnam, Murtha rarely makes such public moves. But when the conservative Democrat speaks on military issues, colleagues tend to listen.

Murtha said Thursday that he has grown so concerned about some of the president's war policies that he plans a speech laying out his recommendations for the war before the Dec. 15 parliamentary elections in Iraq.

"This war is destroying our ability to meet the threat down the road," Murtha said.

Two other senior Democrats weighed in with speeches as well over the past two weeks.

Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts called for a "reasonable time frame" for pulling back troops, and said 20,000 should start returning home in December if the elections go well. And former Senate Democratic leader Tom Daschle said all U.S. troops should be withdrawn from Iraq by the end of 2007.



Protest against Bush
US pays last respect to Rosa Parks with mourn and sangs
Protest against Israeli barrier in West Bank
 
  Today's Top News     Top World News
 

Report: US, China agree on textile imports

 

   
 

Full steam ahead for Sino-Russian partnership

 

   
 

PLA cooks up new menus to beef up soldiers

 

   
 

EU urged to scrap arms embargo

 

   
 

Outbreak kills 9,000 chickens in Liaoning

 

   
 

China, Australia discuss free trade agreement

 

   
  Leaders debate trade; Protests wreak havoc
   
  Experts: Disaster-free zones hard to find
   
  Rioting spreads beyond Paris suburbs
   
  Iraq war 'fuelled terrorism'
   
  Cheney pushes Senate for CIA exemption
   
  U.S. launches major offensive in Iraq
   
 
  Go to Another Section  
 
 
  Story Tools  
   
  News Talk  
  Are the Republicans exploiting the memory of 9/11?  
Manufacturers, Exporters, Wholesalers - Global trade starts here.
Advertisement
         
主站蜘蛛池模板: 亚洲欧美成人综合久久久 | 国产精品综合一区二区 | 国产日韩美国成人 | 亚洲在线精品视频 | 国产免费一级在线观看 | 一本色道久久88 | 午夜性爽爽爽 | 亚洲视频一 | 日本人成免费大片 | 在线精品国内外视频 | 五月天激激婷婷大综合蜜芽 | 久久精品国产99国产精品亚洲 | 日本a级三级三级三级久久 日本a级特黄三级三级三级 | 偷柏自拍亚洲欧美综合在线图 | 亚洲一区浅井舞香在线播放 | 国产精品久久久久久久久久久不卡 | 亚洲免费片 | 久久免费在线视频 | 中文成人在线视频 | 久青草视频在线 | 亚洲伊人色 | 国产一区二区影视 | 国产在线视频精品视频免费看 | 成人午夜爽爽爽免费视频 | 亚洲天堂二区 | 久久精品一区二区三区不卡牛牛 | 欧洲乱码伦视频免费 | 99九九99九九九视频精品 | 国产自在线观看 | 九九看片| 一区二区三区四区免费视频 | 特级毛片aaaa级毛片免费 | 精品国产日韩亚洲一区在线 | 成年网站视频在线观看 | 午夜毛片网站 | 国内精品久久久久久久久蜜桃 | 中文无码日韩欧免费视频 | 网站免费满18成年在线观看 | a欧美在线| 免费国产成人手机在线观看 | 欧美日本一道道一区二区三 |