General Wesley Clark on Fox News
April 29, 2007
Transcription by Melange
Bret Baier: A veto threat will not deter Congressional Democrats from sending a war spending bill to the President's desk this week that includes a timetable for US troop withdrawal. But when the bill is vetoed as promised, then what? Joining me now to talk about this showdown is former presidential candidate and retired Army General Wesley Clark. General, thanks for being here.
GENERAL WESLEY CLARK: Good to be with you, Bret.
Bret Baier: What is the end game here? I mean, we have this political showdown that's been going on, talked about a lot. In two days, the President will veto - definitely, this bill and judging by the numbers on Capitol Hill, there aren't the numbers to override this veto. What do you see the compromise as being?
GENERAL WESLEY CLARK: Well, I think there are compromises that are possible, but I hope the President will work with the Congress on this. I think that the Congress will come back with another bill. I think that the bill will have, instead of some mandatory timelines, it'll have some suggested timelines, it may have some benchmarks that should be met. It'll call for reporting and I think the Congress will seek the President to come forward and work on an amended strategy. This is all a continuation from the voting of the American public in the November elections that said they distrusted the ‘stay the course' strategy that the President proposed. The President has basically continued the ‘stay the course' strategy, Congress is trying to fulfill its responsibilities that it assumed, this Democratic majority felt that they were elected to produce a change in strategy and that's what they're after.
Bret Baier: Republicans say what happens when the US leaves? What happens on the ground in Iraq? You've talked about this many times, but what do you think would happen if we started a withdrawal this year with ... ending it up ... finishing pulling out next year?
GENERAL WESLEY CLARK: Well I don't think that's just a Republican question, I think that's a question Democrats are asking, really every American. I haven't talked to anyone that wants to see us just pull the plug and no matter what the consequences are. Everyone's worried about it but the thing about Iraq is ... <crosstalk>
Bret Baier: Whoa, I'm sorry General, this says ... this bill says you start the withdrawal this year and then you're completed by next year. I mean ...
GENERAL WESLEY CLARK: That's right.
Bret Baier: Those are firm timetables, firm deadlines.
GENERAL WESLEY CLARK: But, Bret, what this depends on is what the political and diplomatic efforts are. The Iraq Study Group said that we should have a broad-range, broad-based diplomatic outreach to the region. This, the administration has refused to do. They have not dealt effectively with Syria and Iran. They're trying to isolate Syria and Iran still and yet as General Petreaus said in his Congressional testimony, Syria and Iran are part of the problem. Somehow we have to make them part of the solution. We're the greatest power on earth. Surely we can talk to people who are basically not on our level. They have no way of threatening us directly, but they are a threat to our troops. Surely we can talk to these people without compromising our values and standards. And I think that's what the Congress expects. I think if that were put together, with a series of benchmarks and with the intention of pulling back and redeploying troops, there are enough loopholes in this bill that there are plenty of troops that will stay in Iraq for a long time – hunting al Qaeda, training the Iraqis, guarding the troops that are training the Iraqis, so this is not a total pull out of troops. What this is is a change in strategy and that's what the American people voted in November for.
Bret Baier: Okay. There is ... while the President has said he doesn't want to sit down one-on-one with Iran or Syria, there is a regional conference that the Iraqis are leading. That's happening. Uh, and there are concerns on both sides about maybe leaving too early. Is that a concern on the Democratic side overall, do you believe?
GENERAL WESLEY CLARK: Of course it is and that's why the bill was written the way it is. There are reasons why we may have to be in and around Iraq for a long time with military power. But fundamentally, this is a problem that you cannot win militarily. This is a political problem inside Iraq. The military action is a component of the solution but you cannot win it. Even if you capture 72 insurgents a day, you will not win this problem militarily. It must be brought to a conclusion by the political effort on the ground inside Iraq. The military can contribute to it but it can't win it. And the President has a responsibility to keep the American people on board. The American people are not buying the President's policy. What the Democratic bill offers is a way to bring the American people back into support of the mission in Iraq and if the President has good judgment, he'll find a way to try to compromise with the Democrats and try to get broader public support because that's a key factor in keeping the American forces there long enough to do the job as it needs to be done.
Bret Baier: General Wesley Clark, thank you for your time.
GENERAL WESLEY CLARK: Thank you.
