Hearing tomorrow on Robert Gates

[TayTay]

Sen. Kerry said yesterday he would vote for Robert Gates, despite past differences with him over things he did back in the late 80's and so forth.

Anyway, It'll be on C-Span 2.



Senate Committee
Secretary of Defense Nomination Hearing
Armed Services
Washington, District of Columbia (United States)
ID: 195525 - 12/05/2006 - 2:00 - ns

Warner, John W. U.S. Senator, R-VA
Gates, Robert M. President, Texas A. & M. University

The Senate Armed Services Committee holds a hearing to consider the nomination of Robert M. Gates to be secretary of Defense.

**************

I missed the Senate. Oh lord, that's sad.

[wisteria]

1. Does this mean a HRC appearance and a McCain?

[ProSense]

2. This could get interesting:

KERRY: There are all kinds of things that the Senate can do. They can change the dynamics here very significantly, not the least of which, obviously, are serious accountability hearings.

Secondly, we have the ability in the Congress to pass one resolution or another or to put into law certain kinds of policies. I mean, you remember back in the days of the Contras in Central America, the Congress passed what was called the Boland Amendment and actually forbade certain activities from taking place.

So Congress has a certain power here. I think before we get into that, it would be so much better if we could sit down with the president, with Condoleezza Rice, and really talk through how we come together, both parties, take the politics out at the water's edge, and get a policy that works for America.

Shaping Iraq Policy Perilous for Democrats

By CQ Staff
Mon Dec 4, 9:46 AM ET

Written by Elaine Monaghan

Tuesday’s Senate confirmation hearing for Robert M. Gates to become the new Defense secretary will provide Democrats with their first opportunity since the elections to strike a tone on the Iraq debate.

Democrats will have another chance on Wednesday, when the bipartisan Iraq Study Group releases its recommendations for a new policy toward the Iraq War. The group’s report is expected to call for a withdrawal of U.S. combat troops from Iraq by early 2008 while leaving enough troops behind to train and support the Iraqi military. The group also is expected to urge President Bush to convene a conference of all of Iraq’s neighbors, including Iran and Syria.

Snip...

John Kerry, D-Mass., another likely candidate, would like to see a meeting between Bush and members of Congress to hammer out a bipartisan policy on Iraq.

In anticipation of White House resistance to Democratic ideas, Kerry hinted that Congress has the power to halt funding for military action. He alluded to the 1982 “Boland Amendment” (PL 97-377), which banned Reagan administration funding for the “contras” opposed to the leftist Sandinista-led government in Nicaragua.

Kerry’s reference came in a Nov. 30 interview with CNN. A day later, a Kerry aide said the senator was not suggesting that Democrats might seek to cut off war funding. Indeed, incoming Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., has said Democrats will not do so while U.S. forces are still deployed in Iraq.

more...

Article also appears in the NYT

[blm]

3. I don't think Kerry would vote for Gates if he wasn't assured withdrawal from Iraq

is Gates' goal. Kerry would be the first against him unless he was given a greater incentive - like certain withdrawal if Gates is passed through.

[sandnsea]

4. Email from Byrd

Looks like they are going to be tough on him, maybe JK knows more about Gates' views than we know. Here's Byrd's email and a link to add your own questions if you want.

Dear Sandy:

Elections have consequences.

The change you all worked so hard to help Democrats achieve on November 7 made it clear that we must begin to chart a new course in Iraq.

This week offers our first step forward with the Senate confirmation hearings for Robert Gates to become Secretary of Defense.

Mr. Gates must indicate that he heard the resounding message that voters sent on November 7.

The departure of Donald Rumsfeld has given America an opportunity to change our policies in Iraq and send a message to the world that the United States is willing to depart from the disastrous unilateral agenda that has served us so poorly these past six years.

Americans voted Democrats into the majority in the Senate because they wanted us to ask the tough questions and demand accountability from the Bush administration. That is exactly what we plan to do. We want to know what Mr. Gates plans are to:


Rectify a situation in Iraq that now has American troops in the crossfire of a civil war.

Fix a military stretched so thin that some units are on their third or fourth tours in Iraq.

Ensure that the abuse scandals we have seen at Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo Bay will not be repeated.

Prevent Afghanistan from once again coming under the
sway of the Taliban and al Qaeda.

These are the defining security issues of our time and Mr. Gates must prove that he is up to the challenge of facing them. My fellow Democrats on the Senate Armed Services Committee have been preparing for this crucial confirmation hearing for weeks and we are ready.

But we would also like to hear from you what questions you think should be asked of Mr. Gates. After all, it is you, our grassroots supporters, who have enabled us to lead the 110th Senate.

http://www.democratsenators.org/dia/track.jsp?key=106118580&url_num=1&url=http://www.dscc.org/defensequestions