Return to Transcripts main page
American Morning
Proposed Strategy Shift in Iraq
Aired November 13, 2003 - 08:14 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: The president sending Paul Bremer back to Baghdad, a proposed shift in strategy there. The move comes after two days of talks with the White House. The goal is to try and speed up efforts to turn governing power over to the Iraqis.
Let's talk about the move with our senior political analyst here, Jeff Greenfield.
Nice to see you -- Jeff.
A somber assessment right now from the White House?
JEFF GREENFIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Oh, yes, and I think that's in part because the pace and the level of attacks on the United States and its allies has clearly picked up. The coalition commander, General Ricardo Sanchez, was simply stating the obvious on Tuesday. Just give a listen to what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LT. GENERAL RICARDO SANCHEZ, COMMANDER, COALITION GROUND FORCES: You've got to be realistic when you see a trend line that goes from five to six attacks, single digit attacks in the May time frame to an average of about 30 attacks in the last 30 days. I mean it's unmistakable that the numbers of engagements per day are increasing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GREENFIELD: Now, what we're also seeing or reading or hearing is, if I can put it this way, a steady increase in less optimism from within the administration, so-called senior officials telling network reporters that Paul Bremer's original plan is no longer tenable. The CIA assessment that took one day to leak that the attacks on the United States and allied interests seem more organized, more intense. And you remember that flap over Defense Secretary Rumsfeld's memo raising the prospect of a long, hard slog?
In part, that's become the dominant theme, Bill, of recent comments.
HEMMER: Yes, we have, as Americans, grown accustomed to wars that oftentimes bloodless.
GREENFIELD: Right.
HEMMER: This is not the case right now with what's happening in Iraq. The political danger for an urgency for that speed is what for the White House?
GREENFIELD: Well, you know, it's fascinating, because part of it is, indeed, this American impatience. But this is really important, I think. The Bush administration is also facing increasing pressure from some of its most ardent supporters of the war. And they're warning that the administration seems to be faltering in its commitment.
Last week, Senator John McCain bluntly said there aren't enough troops on the ground to make the reconstruction work. And in its most recent issue, "The Weekly Standard" -- this is a very influential neo- conservative voice, very pro-war, very supportive of the democracy will happen if we just stay there view -- says that the rush to turn power over to the Iraqis threatens the achievement of the president's goals and that, and this is a quote, "this is a policy in contradiction with itself."
So meanwhile, while you have that pressure, you've got the deployment of National Guard and Reserve forces, the extension of their tours, frustration of the spouses of the U.S. military families, all increasing the pressure to get U.S. forces out and turn things over. While on the political front, you've got Democrats arguing that all these difficulties flow from arrogance or delusion or, in some cases, they are arguing even the willful misleading of the public about what would happen there.
So the cross currents between the people who say you'd better stay and do what you said you did, we backed you, and the people saying let's turn this over and get out as fast as we can.
HEMMER: The one thing you mentioned at the end there, public support. Right now it appears to be still in the White House's favor. Is there any shift in that right now that you can perceive?
GREENFIELD: It's certainly shifted from a few months ago because the events on the ground have. And the administration still has cards it is hoping to play. Obviously, if they got Saddam Hussein, if they found weapons of mass destruction, if things improve. But I'll tell you the most, the biggest asset they have is that they are Republicans. Every survey shows that Republicans have enormous advantages over Democrats on national security matters.
One survey by the Democracy Corps, that's a Democratic operation, showed the Republicans with a 30 point advantage on national security. Another Democrat pollster, Mark Penn, showed it with a 35 point advantage.
So the fact that voters in general trust Republicans more, I think, is a big advantage. If this were a Democratic administration facing all this, I think they'd be in even much hotter water.
HEMMER: In addition to that, you see the AC-130 gunships in the air over Baghdad yesterday. If you can start to really show proof and evidence that you're rounding up, let's say, "the bad guys," then perhaps that perception continues to go in the favor of the White House, also. GREENFIELD: Yes, without being too cynical, I do think that one of the big things the administration is trying to show in this last 48 hours is we're in charge, we're taking action, we can change course if we have to and we're on top of things.
HEMMER: Thanks, Jeff.
GREENFIELD: OK.
HEMMER: More to come, certainly.
GREENFIELD: Yes.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired November 13, 2003 - 08:14 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: The president sending Paul Bremer back to Baghdad, a proposed shift in strategy there. The move comes after two days of talks with the White House. The goal is to try and speed up efforts to turn governing power over to the Iraqis.
Let's talk about the move with our senior political analyst here, Jeff Greenfield.
Nice to see you -- Jeff.
A somber assessment right now from the White House?
JEFF GREENFIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Oh, yes, and I think that's in part because the pace and the level of attacks on the United States and its allies has clearly picked up. The coalition commander, General Ricardo Sanchez, was simply stating the obvious on Tuesday. Just give a listen to what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LT. GENERAL RICARDO SANCHEZ, COMMANDER, COALITION GROUND FORCES: You've got to be realistic when you see a trend line that goes from five to six attacks, single digit attacks in the May time frame to an average of about 30 attacks in the last 30 days. I mean it's unmistakable that the numbers of engagements per day are increasing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GREENFIELD: Now, what we're also seeing or reading or hearing is, if I can put it this way, a steady increase in less optimism from within the administration, so-called senior officials telling network reporters that Paul Bremer's original plan is no longer tenable. The CIA assessment that took one day to leak that the attacks on the United States and allied interests seem more organized, more intense. And you remember that flap over Defense Secretary Rumsfeld's memo raising the prospect of a long, hard slog?
In part, that's become the dominant theme, Bill, of recent comments.
HEMMER: Yes, we have, as Americans, grown accustomed to wars that oftentimes bloodless.
GREENFIELD: Right.
HEMMER: This is not the case right now with what's happening in Iraq. The political danger for an urgency for that speed is what for the White House?
GREENFIELD: Well, you know, it's fascinating, because part of it is, indeed, this American impatience. But this is really important, I think. The Bush administration is also facing increasing pressure from some of its most ardent supporters of the war. And they're warning that the administration seems to be faltering in its commitment.
Last week, Senator John McCain bluntly said there aren't enough troops on the ground to make the reconstruction work. And in its most recent issue, "The Weekly Standard" -- this is a very influential neo- conservative voice, very pro-war, very supportive of the democracy will happen if we just stay there view -- says that the rush to turn power over to the Iraqis threatens the achievement of the president's goals and that, and this is a quote, "this is a policy in contradiction with itself."
So meanwhile, while you have that pressure, you've got the deployment of National Guard and Reserve forces, the extension of their tours, frustration of the spouses of the U.S. military families, all increasing the pressure to get U.S. forces out and turn things over. While on the political front, you've got Democrats arguing that all these difficulties flow from arrogance or delusion or, in some cases, they are arguing even the willful misleading of the public about what would happen there.
So the cross currents between the people who say you'd better stay and do what you said you did, we backed you, and the people saying let's turn this over and get out as fast as we can.
HEMMER: The one thing you mentioned at the end there, public support. Right now it appears to be still in the White House's favor. Is there any shift in that right now that you can perceive?
GREENFIELD: It's certainly shifted from a few months ago because the events on the ground have. And the administration still has cards it is hoping to play. Obviously, if they got Saddam Hussein, if they found weapons of mass destruction, if things improve. But I'll tell you the most, the biggest asset they have is that they are Republicans. Every survey shows that Republicans have enormous advantages over Democrats on national security matters.
One survey by the Democracy Corps, that's a Democratic operation, showed the Republicans with a 30 point advantage on national security. Another Democrat pollster, Mark Penn, showed it with a 35 point advantage.
So the fact that voters in general trust Republicans more, I think, is a big advantage. If this were a Democratic administration facing all this, I think they'd be in even much hotter water.
HEMMER: In addition to that, you see the AC-130 gunships in the air over Baghdad yesterday. If you can start to really show proof and evidence that you're rounding up, let's say, "the bad guys," then perhaps that perception continues to go in the favor of the White House, also. GREENFIELD: Yes, without being too cynical, I do think that one of the big things the administration is trying to show in this last 48 hours is we're in charge, we're taking action, we can change course if we have to and we're on top of things.
HEMMER: Thanks, Jeff.
GREENFIELD: OK.
HEMMER: More to come, certainly.
GREENFIELD: Yes.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
