Wednesday, March 28, 2007

Carl Levin: Bush's Secret Senate Supporter

Carl Levin says that he's voting for a date-certain for withdrawal from Iraq in order to help the President:

But Senate Armed Services Chairman Carl Levin (D-Mich.) said that for all the president’s objections to setting a timetable for withdrawal, Bush actually has told him personally that it is “useful” for the Iraqis to hear that support in the U.S. is waning for a continuing troop presence in Iraq.

“What we’re doing here is giving [the White House] leverage with the Iraqi leaders,” Levin said, indicating that the president is using the Democratic “bad cops” position to pressure Iraqis to improve training and readiness of their own troops and security personnel.

Levin said that, despite the president’s private acknowledgements that the Democrats’ Iraq language is serving a constructive purpose, “he’ll veto it, because he wants to be the good cop.”

I'm not in law enforcement, but when playing 'good cop/bad cop,' aren't you supposed to coordinate it ahead?

And if the President says he doesn't think it's helping, will Levin continue to do what the President asks?

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