Bush urges Maliki to step up political efforts
Iraq-USA, Politics, 7/16/2007

White House Spokesman Tony Snow said today that he support the Iraq's prime minister Maliki, and said that the Iraqis understand that they need to be making political progress.

Snow was questioned on why the US should support Maliki, and what the US sees in him, to which Snow said "the Prime Minister has made it clear -- and he has shared ideas, and I'm not going to get into them -- but he's being very aggressive on the front of trying to build larger coalitions."

Snow said "I simply do not want to get into the particulars of conversations from the Iraqi side. But it is a safe characterization to say that they do understand the importance not only for the Iraqi people, but for the American public of seeing political progress... keep in mind that the President not only speaks regularly with the Prime Minister, but also with our people on the ground -- Ambassador Crocker, General Petraeus and others. And they're also in regular contact with the Prime Minister. But I don't .. at this point, I don't want to get into particulars that the Iraqi government may be engaged in just because it's important."

Snow said "The strong support is based on not only his measure of the Prime Minister, it's also what he's hearing from the Prime Minister; it is conversation also with the readouts and the conversations that the Prime Minister and others in his government are having with senior diplomats either at the State Department or in our embassy in Baghdad. It's a combination of factors where -- again, as a result of communications that the President has been having with the government of Iraq."

Asked "I would think if you're making your case not just to Congress, but to the American people about, stay with us, we need more time here to let this all unfold, that you could say, and Prime Minister Maliki is our guy because -- because of what?"

Snow said that talks were confidential between the two heads of state and "Number one, he is committed to political reconciliation and political progress. Number two, he is committed also to dealing with the tough issues of security. Number three, he's been working on the diplomatic front and continues to express himself... what he's accomplished is you're working toward those goals. Look, the President, again, realizes the political stuff, which is what have you accomplished. Let me back up. Take a look at the difference between the security situation a few months ago and today. And what you have seen is significant security advancements, in part because the Iraqis have stepped forward much more assertively than before. They're putting their forces on the front line. They have had successes in places like Baghdad, Anbar and now Diyala. Why? Because there is a sense now that the Americans are going to -- we're going to keep our word, in terms of security. The Iraqis are stepping forward; they're also demonstrating their faith, in terms of building security. And you have seen a different security situation, not only in terms of the strength of the opponents, but also in terms of Iraqi citizens, themselves, standing up. You hear a lot of talk of bottom-up progress. Bottom-up progress means the people now who see the Americans and the Iraqis working side by side are saying, we're going after al Qaeda. We will tell you where the militias are hiding out; we will tell you where the insurgents are. And there are very significant advancements just in the two months since Congress approved the finances for this. So that's number one."

Snow added "Number two, the Prime Minister has made it clear -- and he has shared ideas, and I'm not going to get into them -- but he's being very aggressive on the front of trying to build larger coalitions. And I understand one of the things the President made clear is we hear these things, we need to see results, and that will be the byproduct of the leadership."

Asked "But are things clearer to Maliki now? I mean, because, Kelly's point, it's true, you've said this time and time again -- is it clearer to the President now that Maliki understands? Has he made it clearer to the President he understands?" Snow said "It's not only -- Maliki is not the only player here. You also have a presidency council .. and the conversations today were designed to be very candid about the importance of political progress. The Prime Minister in and of himself can't do it. He needs support from Shia, he needs it from Sunni, he needs it from Kurds. And he spoke to Shia, Sunni and Kurd leaders today, as well. So the question is, do they get it? And the answer is, yes, and not just the Prime Minister."

Asked that "Senator Susan Collins, Republican of Maine, told Newsweek, in the new issue, that "the fact that the Iraqi politicians feel free to be going on vacation in August, while our men and women are out there dying doesn't make me think we're going to see any more progress by September." and that "It's just that my patience with the administration's strategy is exhausted." She was talking, obviously, about the Bush administration strategy, not Maliki. What do you say -- do you still contend from that podium that Republicans on the Hill are not breaking with the President?" " Snow said that "what I say is we're going to have to see what progress we get .. some Republicans are broken, but a number of these Republicans previously have expressed skepticism. If you look at the difference in votes, it's not huge, but on the other hand, you also have expressions -- you can call it a break, but if you take a look at Senators Warner and Lugar, for instance, they are concerned about getting to a point where you can pull American forces out of the front line role, but they're not talking about leaving, they're not talking about -- they are also talking about having a long-term presence in Iraq. As Steve Hadley said yesterday, those are important conversations to have. But they're important conversations to have after the September 15th report."

Snow said "redeploying does not necessarily mean leaving. That means moving them... it means moving them around. It does not necessarily mean -- you're going to have to ask them about any specific troop force or force movements that they may have in mind. But they simply have talked generally about redeployment. My understanding is that they were primarily concerned about redeployment from front lines."

Asked about "the President telling Maliki that it's important to make progress, not just for his sake but for the political situation back here. Is that what he's talking about, statements by Nunn, Lugar, Todd, some of these other folks?" Snow said "the Iraqis are certainly familiar with what's going on in Congress, and they're familiar with the political situation here in the states. There was no specific discussion of members of Congress or pieces of legislation."

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