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Politics
Bilirakis finds mixed bag in Iraq
By WES ALLISON, Times Staff riter
Published August 15, 2007
WASHINGTON - Fresh from his first trip to Iraq, U.S. Rep. Gus Bilirakis says American and Iraqi forces are gaining ground on the violence, but he is dismayed by the Iraqi political situation. Bilirakis and a handful of other House members spent Tuesday meeting with local officials and U.S. Marines in the town of Fallujah, then met with U.S. military and Iraqi officials in Baghdad. In a phone interview late Tuesday from Kuwait, Bilirakis, a freshman Republican from Palm Harbor, said he was encouraged by the morale of U.S. troops and by the way Sunni tribal leaders in Anbar province have turned against al-Qaida terrorists. He said he also was impressed with the U.S. commander in Iraq, Army Gen. David Petraeus, but holds no illusions: Turning Iraq into an orderly, functioning nation will be hard, and it will take time. "I am cautiously optimistic. There is a lot of work to be done, a lot of work to be done," Bilirakis said. "Militarily, there have been improvements. But politically, the government ... has been slower." The trip comes a month before Petraeus is to give Congress a much-anticipated progress report on how a recent surge of U.S. troops into Iraq is working. A good report could shore up ebbing support for President Bush's policy. A bad one could cause defections among Republicans, giving Democrats the votes they need to cut funding for military operations there. Bilirakis has always voted against Democratic attempts to curtail the president's policy in Iraq. He said Tuesday he wasn't ready to say if the United States should leave soon or stay. "It's a very, very difficult situation, and we can't politicize this," he said. "We're going to have to phase out eventually, because of the capacity. But the generals are optimistic, and we need to listen to them. ... Let's see what the government does between now and then, too." Wes Allison can be reached at allison@sptimes.com or 202 463-0577.
[Last modified August 14, 2007, 23:42:18]
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by Lisa
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08/15/07 02:23 PM
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Well, if wanting to protect and preserve our freedoms and way of life is a "position in Bush lap as a party line puppet" - so be it. Long live the United States of America!
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by Paul
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08/15/07 02:10 PM
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Jack, don't help. As a republican, I ask, don't be on my side. What is a trator?
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by Vik
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08/15/07 12:33 PM
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Gus never served in the military. Our troops are dying everyday in Iraq and the majority of Americans want our troops out now. I wonder how many of Bilirakisò019 family members are serving in Iraq or served in Vietnam for that matter?
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by Jack
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08/15/07 11:08 AM
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Smart move. It took the United States 200 years to get civilized. Lets see we been there how long? Grow up they have not been able to even begin to have leaders in over 125 years nothing is right away!
Stop listening to the trators from the Dems.
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by Harold
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08/15/07 08:06 AM
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So, he not only inherited his daddy's seat in Congress but his position in Bush lap as a party line puppet.
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