Bush and Dems jockey in advance of Petraeus report

President Bush set the stage Saturday for next week’s debates in Congress over the future of the American mission in Iraq by highlighting military and diplomatic successes in Anbar province, a vast expanse stretching from Baghdad to the Jordanian border, and for much of the war, an area dominated by al Qaeda.

But Democrats challenged Bush by highlighting the lack of political progress among Iraqis, the cost of the war, and the failure to capture Osama bin Laden.

{mosads}On Monday, Gen. David Petraeus will testify on the status of the war, a briefing that many in Congress say will be pivotal in debates this fall over how many troops should be kept in Iraq and for how long.

In the wake of a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report that said the U.S.-backed Iraqi government has failed to meet 15 of 18 benchmarks it set for itself, such as crafting an oil revenue sharing plan and reintegrating former members of the ruling Ba’ath party, Bush has chosen to focus on military success in Anbar to argue that the mission in Iraq is making progress.

“Last year at this time, Anbar was all over the news,” said Bush in a radio address to the nation. “Newspapers at the time cited a leaked intelligence report that was pessimistic about our prospects there.”

“But local citizens saw what life under al Qaeda meant for them,” Bush said. “The terrorists brutalized the people of Anbar and killed those who opposed their dark ideology. So the tribal sheiks of Anbar came together to fight al Qaeda.”

The president said that tribal sheiks received support from U.S. troops and the Iraqi government and drove al Qaeda out of its strongholds.

“The level of violence is down,” Bush said. “Local governments are meeting again. Young Sunnis are joining the police and army. And normal life is returning.”

In a radio address following the president Saturday, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) noted that Tuesday is the sixth anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks and accused the Bush administration of diverting the nation into an unnecessary war before “finish[ing] the job of destroying al Qaeda.”

The senator likened the invasion of Iraq after 9/11 to “attacking Mexico after Pearl Harbor.”

Reid also emphasized the failure of the Iraqi government to meet many of its benchmarks and the cost of the war. Reid said the country is spending nearly $3 billion a week on the conflict, a figure that is likely to be raised repeatedly this fall as Democratic leaders and Bush clash over the size of domestic spending bills.

Sen. Judd Gregg (N.H.), ranking Republican on the Senate Budget Committee, told The Hill last week that Democrats want to spend $22 billion more than Bush on non-defense discretionary spending programs, the cost of about two months of operations in Iraq.

Bush also summarized to the nation an eight-hour trip he made to Anbar province at the beginning of the week on his way to Australia.

Bush said he had encouraging meetings with tribal sheiks from Anbar and with national leaders: President Talabani, Prime Minister Maliki, and President Barzani of the Kurdish region.

He added that Petraeus briefed him on progress made across Iraq and asked Congress to listen to Petraeus next week “before jumping to any conclusion,” a sign that the top U.S. commander in Iraq will deliver a fairly upbeat report to lawmakers next week.