Voinovich's Iraq assessment? You'll have to wait.

[OhioChick]

August 22, 2007 09:58AM
Sen. George Voinovich is back from Iraq. But he's not talking, at least not yet to reporters. He wants to digest what he saw and heard, talk with some experts, mull it over a bit. Is the military "surge" working? Can Sunnis work with Shiites or are rifts, fueled over centuries, inevitable? Should the United States cut its losses and get out?

"He's not going to get into that right now -- what's working, what's not working, is the surge working," said his spokesman, Chris Paulitz. "He's not really interested in a soundbite response."

Voinovich spent 10 to 14 hours in Iraq yesterday, flying on Blackhawk helicopters to areas outside Baghdad's "Green Zone" to meet with soldiers, civilians, Iraqi officials and U.S. military leaders including commanding Gen. David Petraeus. He flew into the country on a C-130 jet with soldiers arriving for duty, and he flew out on a C-130 with soldiers departing.

Before that, he visited Landstuhl Medical Center in Germany, where 95 percent of troops injured in Iraq are taken, Paulitz said. And he stopped in Kuwait and met with soldiers and others from Ohio. In Iraq, he made sure to visit areas outside Al Anbar Province, because "he already knows it is going well" there, Paulitz said.

The Ohio Republican, who arranged the taxpayer-funded trip for himself as well as Tennessee Republican senators Lamar Alexander and Bob Corker and Sen. David Vitter from Louisiana, wanted "an unvarnished view," Paulitz said.

But you'll have to wait to hear Voinovich's thoughts. Maybe next week. Maybe the week after.

http://blog.cleveland.com/openers/2007/08/voinovichs_iraq_assessment_you.html

Why the silence...? I'd like to hear this "unvarnished" view.

[shain from kane]

1. Did the loincloth-clad Vitter hook up with any Iraqi whores over there?

[peace13]

2. Voinovich is dead to me.

I won't wait to hear what he has to say. He has had his chances to turn this thing around and he did not do the honorable thing. As an Ohioan I am embarrassed of him. George sit down, collect your retirement and let someone bigger get the job done. It is a shame that these young men and women want to make it out of Iraq alive and in one piece and it is always the old, dirty politicians that return to us without so much as a hair out of place. Peace, Kim

[OhioChick]

3. I Don't Like Him, Either.....

Isn't it nice to have Sherrod Brown now, instead of DeWine?

[peace13]

5. It is wonderful to have Brown.

He keeps me just to the right of sanity. Peace, Kim

[partylessinOhio]

4. No surprise that George Voinovich continues to disappoint us.

With such an extensive vacation at our expense surely George must have seen and heard enough to give us a report. Or did he have his hearing aid turned off?

We know the real reason. He doesn't want to step on *'s toes by speaking out before Petraeus plays ventriloquist dummy!

:thumbsdown:

[Supersedeas]

6. taxpayer funded - unvarnished view - coordinated through and by Gen Patraes