Washington D.C.— Today, the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations held the first in a series of hearings on alternatives for the future of Iraq.  Witnesses were General Wesley Clark, the former NATO Supreme Allied Commander for Europe, Max Boot, a Senior Fellow in the National Security Studies program for the Council on Foreign Relations, and Dr. Muqtedar Khan, a Professor of Political Science and International Relations at the University of Delaware and Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institute.

 

Subcommittee Chairman Vic Snyder (D-AR) released the following statement after the hearing:

 

“Too often, the debate in Washington has centered around two misleading extremes –withdrawing from Iraq immediately, or staying the course indefinitely.  Throughout the month of July, it is our intention to broaden the scope of this discussion by eliciting testimony on a ‘third way’ – other options from retired senior military officers and respected academic experts.

 

“We asked these witnesses to look forward rather than backward and to present their thoughts on practical plans and alternatives for moving ahead in Iraq.  Specifically, we asked them to discuss the financial and personnel requirements of their plans, as well as their impact on the people of Iraq, regional stability, our military and our national security.  We had a candid discussion, and we appreciate them appearing before us today.

 

“It is our hope that these hearings will help to inform our committee deliberations and the greater Congressional debate, as we draw closer to General Petraeus’ September report.  We believe we must begin to look ahead in a bipartisan fashion, with a measured and realistic discussion of where we are, where we need to be, and how best to get there.”

 

The second hearing in the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee’s series on a “Third Way in Iraq” will be Wednesday, July 18.

 

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