Washington - Hillary Clinton, who is seeking the Democratic
presidential nomination, said Tuesday that President George W Bush's
policy in Iraq is 'irresponsible' and has harmed national security.
'It could be fair to say that it might well be irresponsible to
continue the policy that has not produced the results that have been
promised,' Clinton said.
Clinton spoke during testimony given by the top commander in
Iraq, General David Petraues, and ambassador Ryan Crocker on the
progress in Iraq under Bush's troop surge.
Petraeus recommended a 45-day pause in US troop withdrawals once
the surge ends in July, which, if accepted by Bush, would keep troop
levels at about 140,000.
Clinton said Bush's policy in Iraq has come at 'tremendous cost
to our national security and to the men and women who wear the
uniform of the United States military.'
Clinton has said if she wins the White House and succeeds Bush
when he leaves in January, she will begin withdrawals within 60 days
of taking office.
The presumptive Republican nominee, John McCain, strongly backed
Bush's troop surge and has argued on the campaign trail that the
United States has a moral obligation to stay with the mission and
not abandon the Iraqi people.
McCain, the Arizona senator, said the Bush administration in the
four years after toppling Saddam Hussein's regime had 'mismanaged
war' but had adopted the right strategy a year ago by deploying more
troops.
'Today it is possible to talk with real hope and optimism about
the future of Iraq and the outcome of our efforts there,' he
said. 'We're no longer staring into the abyss of defeat and we can
now look ahead to the genuine prospect of success.'
Clinton is trailing Illinois senator Barack Obama for the
Democratic nod. Obama, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations
Committee, was due to address Petraeus and Crocker later on Tuesday.
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