US says Iraqi constitutional compromise is very positive

The Bush administration says it views a last-minute compromise among Iraqi legislators on the country's draft constitution as "something that is very positive," and "part of what democracy and freedom are all about."

White House press secretary Scott McClellan said the agreement, which will allow the constitution to be subject to amendment once a new national government is elected, will help to strengthen Iraqi democracy.

"We welcome it. What we have always encouraged is that the political process be as inclusive as possible," he said.

Democracy, said McClellan, is "about compromise and consensus building. And Iraqi leaders are showing even though sometimes this process can be difficult, that they are determined to build a future that is based on freedom, that they are strongly committed to democracy."

Earlier in the day, McClellan said that the agreement would likely encourage more Iraqis to participate in the country's political process Ð not only in the October 15 referendum on the constitution, but in the future as well. (See Iraq's Political Process.)

He also repeated President Bush's view that "terrorists who seek to derail the transition of a democracy will continue to try to stop the political process from moving forward by attacking innocent civilians."

The more political progress Iraq makes, he said, "the more desperate the terrorists become, and we expect to see continued violence because the terrorists understand how high the stakes are in Iraq."