Posted on 01/11/2007 5:13:27 PM PST by Flavius
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Democratic and Republican senators voiced strong concern on Thursday that the Iraq war could spread to neighboring Iran and Syria if the U.S. military were to chase militants across the border.
President Bush, who accuses Iran and Syria of fomenting the violence in Iraq, on Wednesday proposed sending 21,500 more U.S. troops to try to restore security nearly four years after the U.S.-led invasion.
Bush sparked worries that the conflict may widen by his comment that "we'll interrupt the flow of support from Iran and Syria. And we will seek out and destroy the networks providing advanced weaponry and training to our enemies in Iraq."
U.S. officials said their plan was to disrupt such networks while staying inside Iraq, but their comments did not appear to mollify senior U.S. lawmakers.
Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Joseph Biden bluntly told Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice he did not think Bush had the authority to launch attacks to stamp out militant networks in Iran and Syria.
"If the president concluded he had to invade Iran ... or Syria in pursuit of these networks, I believe the present authorization granted the president to use force in Iraq does not cover that and he does need congressional authority to do that," said Biden.
"I just want to set that marker," added the Delaware Democrat, who later wrote Bush a letter asking for an "authoritative answer" on whether he believed U.S. forces could cross into Iran or Syria without congressional authorization.
In a testy hearing about Bush's new plan for Iraq, Rice said she did not want to speculate on the president's constitutional authority for such action.
NOTHING RULED OUT
"Obviously, the president isn't going to rule anything out to protect our troops, but the plan is to take down these networks in Iraq," she said.
Earlier on Thursday, U.S. forces stormed an Iranian government representative's office in the northern Iraqi city of Arbil and arrested five people, including diplomats.
We will continue to work with the Iraqis and use all of our power to limit and counter the activities of Iranian agents who are attacking our people and innocent civilians in Iraq," Rice said in a prepared statement given to the committee.
Republican Sen. Chuck Hagel of Nebraska also expressed concern about potential future U.S. action in Iran or Syria.
"You cannot sit here today -- not because you're dishonest or you don't understand -- but no one in our government can sit here today and tell Americans that we won't engage the Iranians and the Syrians cross-border," said Hagel, a Vietnam veteran and possible 2008 presidential candidate.
Several Republican and Democratic senators pressured the Bush administration to talk directly to Iran, but Rice repeated the administration's reluctance to do so unless Iran abandons sensitive atomic work, a step Tehran has so far rejected.
Rice suggested Iran might use a dialogue about Iraq to extort U.S. concessions on its nuclear program, a trade-off U.S. officials have rejected. The United States believes the program is aimed at building weapons, while Tehran says it is for generating electricity.
The United States has sought to pressure Iran over its nuclear program through a unanimous U.N. Security Council sanctions resolution that passed in December, but the top U.S. intelligence official suggested Iran's economy was resilient.
"Record oil revenues and manageable debt suggest that Iran is capable, for now, of weathering shocks to the economy," U.S. intelligence chief John Negroponte said in written testimony submitted to the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence.
Separately, key lawmakers warned they would insist that the Bush administration impose sanctions on China if Beijing pursues an agreement to develop Iranian gas fields.
The two countries in December announced a preliminary deal, believed worth $16 billion, for China to invest in Iran's north Pars gas field and to construct plants to produce liquefied natural gas.
(Additional reporting Sue Pleming)
© Reuters 2007. All Rights Reserved
You're On!!!!
Get in line!
Senators fear Iraq war may spill to Iran, Syria and the U.S. will win
I wish we all owned death rays, it would be ever so much more fun!
Senators fear; I hope.
Once again, note that this article was written by Arshad Mohammed and David Morgan.
Seemingly, every damned news organization in the world now has a reporter named Mohammed reporting on the War on Terror. Apparently they are no longer even attempting to hide that they are working for the other side.
What is this, Islamicist Affirmative Action?
Iraq war spill to Syria and Iran? Now that's a joke. There is no war first of all. It's a peacekeeping operation with lots of terrorists coming over from Iran and Syria into Iraq committing vionent acts. The dems have it backwards.
"I hope it "spills over" and we handle the spill entirely from the air."
I hope it really spills over and we continue to catch more Iranians doing their bad stuff in Iraq, as just happened.
Already looks like a good "spill over" will happen, and it is about time! Can't wait for the all out bombing of Iran! We will then see the problems in Iraq drop very quickly, I believe.
>> I think Bush;s plan is to draw them out in the open.We are going to have smack them down sooner or later.
Good point.
And when we're done with Hagel and Biden, we can start in smacking down Syria and Iran!
If this bunch of limp-wristed republicans and communist RATS are "afraid" of this happening.....you can be damn sure that's exactly what NEEDS to occur.
Sounds like they are anticipating and wanting to get some Bush bashing in before it happens.
And that was the smartest thing Nixon ever did. Maybe the only smart thing.
OK
Now we really are getting into Korea and Vietnam all over again...
The 'civil war' is being staged across sacrosanct borders.
Our troops are fighting it under ROE that deny them persuit.
These genuises are afraid it'll spill back over?
by Dr. Jack Wheeler
[Author of the Reagan Doctrine]
Thursday, 07 December 2006
One hundred and forty years ago, British philosopher John Stuart Mill (1806-1873) wrote:
War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things: the decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks that nothing is worth a war, is much worse... A man who has nothing which he is willing to fight for, nothing which he cares more about than he does about his personal safety, is a miserable creature who has no chance of being free, unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself. (Dissertations and Discussions 1867 Vol.1 p. 26.)
A perfect description of the Democrat Party leadership and the editors of the New York Times today. Which is why they are hyping the Iraq Study Group Report to the moon.
They hope to use the hype to force President Bush to surrender in Iraq. They will not succeed.
Yesterday (12/06), I and a small group of conservatives met with a top White House aide (whose comments were not for attribution so I can't name him). In so many words, he told us that President Bush's response to the Iraq Study Group Report and the media hysteria around it is: "Thank you for sharing."
"Several Republicans"
First off, I don't trust Reuters definition of several Republicans. I'd like a complete list of names.
That being said, reading these quotes from Hagel somewhat alleviates my continuing anger at the no shows last Nov.
That headline says it all. These Senators talk big when they think no action will be taken (like with Clinton). When they gave Bush the authority to go to war, they really thought (like Kerry) that Bush wouldn't go through with it. Then they learned otherwise. Now they're scared sh**less.
I can understand your sentiments. He's not even a rhino. He is a Demo mole. When is his term up?
You really dont have to send troops across the border. you just kill those who come across to your side.
You also kill anything that looks like it might transport armaments/
Hello Senators,
Have you been on vacation to Mars? Who do you think is fighters and funding for the insurrgency in Iraq? It's Iran and Syria. The fight is already being fought and it is high time we recognized it and moved forward to win it.
Kalee
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.