Revolt in the Senate, or common sense?

Today’s lesson in media bias – two very different takes on Senator Warner’s revelation yesterday after returning from Iraq. The first from the Washington Post entitled “Warner calls for pullouts by Christmas“;

Sen. John W. Warner, one of the most influential Republican voices in Congress on national security, called on President Bush yesterday to begin withdrawing U.S. troops from Iraq in time for Christmas as a new intelligence report concluded that political leaders in Baghdad are “unable to govern effectively.” Warner’s declaration — after the Virginia senator’s recent four-day trip to the Middle East — roiled the political environment ahead of a much-anticipated progress report to be delivered Sept. 11 by Army Gen. David H. Petraeus, the top U.S. commander in Iraq. Although Warner had already broken with Bush’s strategy, this was the first time he endorsed pulling troops out by a specific date.

Hmm, no direct quotes, just a reporter’s interpretation of what Warner said – and it sounds like he was pretty firm about withdrawing troops doesn’t it? Now from the Washington Examiner, a story entitled US General Wary of Withdrawal;

Warner, R-Va., former chairman of the Armed Services Committee and Navy secretary during the Vietnam War, said Thursday that Bush would be sending a powerful message to Iraq’s government that the U.S. commitment there is not open-ended. Warner says the president should get to decide when and how many troops should leave. He also did not mention any places where he thought reductions were possible in Iraq, where some regions are worse than others.

Sounds like two different speeches doesn’t it? And an even more different approach from the Washington Times;

The updated National Intelligence Estimate (NIE), a consensus view of the CIA, the Defense Intelligence Agency and other services, says “measurable” security improvements were made in war-torn Iraq since January and will expand modestly in the next 12 months with continued military pressure on insurgents.

Within hours of the report”s release, Sen. John W. Warner of Virginia called on President Bush to bring some U.S. troops home by Christmas, and Army Secretary Pete Geren ruled out extending troop deployments beyond the current 15 months.

So despite the fact that the Post wants us to believe there’s a revolt against the President in the Senate led by Senator Warner, the real truth is that Warner actually concurs with the anticipated proposal by General Petareus that we begin drawing down the troops – and the President.

Category: Media, Politics, Terror War