Gutknecht question at White House
Rep. Gil Gutknecht's assessment of the situation in Iraq came up during the White House press briefing yesterday. Minnesota Campaign Report tipped me off to this yesterday, but I got too busy with my "real" job to follow up on it. This is from the White House transcript:
Q Can I ask you about Iraq? A Republican Congressman, Gil Gutknecht from Minnesota came back from a trip last week to Iraq, an official trip, and came back and said he believes the conditions on the ground are worse than the administration has been telling the public. And he's also now calling for troops to start coming home. What's the White House reaction to that?
MR. SNOW: The White House reaction is that, number one, we understand that there is a real attempt, especially in and around Baghdad, to create violence, create havoc, and weaken the government. And the response to that is not to run away, but to figure out how best to deal with the terror elements so that the Maliki government is going to be able to operate effectively.
And I guarantee you, that's going to be one of the key things that the President and the Prime Minister talk about next week.
Q But when John Murtha and other Democrats called for troops to come home, Karl Rove and others have said that this is cutting and running. Here you have a Republican Congressman in a tight re-election. He's saying troops should come home, and that the conditions on the ground are not as you're saying.
MR. SNOW: Well, we also disagree with him.
Q Is he waving the white flag of surrender?
MR. SNOW: No. He's expressing his opinion.
John.
Q Thank you, Tony. Two questions. First, following up on the question of --
MR. SNOW: Actually, Mark, you'll have to ask him. Ask him. That's the best way to get the good answer
Create a More Connected Minnesota
MPR News is your trusted resource for the news you need. With your support, MPR News brings accessible, courageous journalism and authentic conversation to everyone - free of paywalls and barriers. Your gift makes a difference.