Brian Williams Calls Out Petraeus on Al Qaeda Fearmongering; Frank Rich Would Approve

This week has been marked by two big news events: The Petraeus hearings in Washington, and the sixth anniversary of 9/11. It is probably safe to say that this confluence of events has not been an accident.

Also not an accident: The emphasis on al Qaeda as the enemy in Iraq. The Sunnis — former Saddam Ba'athists — have been repositioned as American allies who are now fighting al Qaeda in Iraq, often referred to simply as "Al Qaeda" in a phrase with very familiar associations — but associations which pre-dated any sort of Al Qaeda presence in Iraq.

Frank Rich picked up on this in his column this past Sunday, noting the coincidence of 9/11 with Petraues Week, as well as how the generic reference to "Al Qaeda" has taken root:

Anchoring the "CBS Evening News" from Iraq last week, Katie Couric seemed to be drinking the same Kool-Aid (or eating the same lobster tortellini) as Mr. O'Hanlon. As "a snapshot of what's going right," she cited Falluja, a bombed-out city with 80 percent unemployment, and she repeatedly spoke of American victories against "Al Qaeda." Channeling the president's bait-and-switch, she never differentiated between that local group he calls "Al Qaeda in Iraq" and the Qaeda that attacked America on 9/11. Al Qaeda in Iraq, which didn't even exist on 9/11, may represent as little as 2 to 5 percent of the Sunni insurgency, according to a new investigation in The Washington Monthly by Andrew Tilghman, a former Iraq correspondent for Stars and Stripes.

Yesterday, NBC's Brian Williams picked up that ball with a vengeance, directly challenging General Petraeus on that point:

Over the last two days of testimony, you mentioned Al Qaeda, by our count, 160 times. Now for a lot of Americans, al Qaeda - that's the guys who flew those planes into the buildings in New York, and Washington, and Pennsylvania. Explain what you mean — because Al Qaeda in Iraq wasn't around that day.

Petraues responded that Al Qaeda in Iraq was "part of the greater al Qaeda movement" and "the
the organization that has carried out the most horrific, most damaging terrorist actions in Iraq." Petraues had previously referred to al Qaeda as "public enemy number one" in Iraq, even though it represents at most 8 - 15% of the total insurgency — and that's the uppermost estimate. Various intelligence reports put that at a much lower number, all the way down to only 2 -5% of the total insurgency.

That's the background. Watch how Williams gets Petraeus to backtrack on that point:

From "public enemy number one" to "it's not a unified force" and framing it as insurgents who had formed "a loose confederation with al Qaeda at various times" — wow. Though Petraeus said "We do not label them all al Qaeda and I have tried very hard not to imply that or to state that," consider the transcript from his first day testimony: Gains against al Qaeda is the first reason cited for progress in Iraq, and he says "tribal rejection of al Qaeda...may be the most significant development of the past eight months." Al Qaeda figures prominently in examples of progress made across the country, and there are frequent references to "al Qaeda and other extremists" and "al Qaeda and insurgent sanctuaries" and "al Qaeda and its affiliates." Most often, though, the references are only to al Qaeda. In light of Williams' questioning, it would seem that Petraeus was at best imprecise and at worst misleading in his frequent use of the term to apply to that particular non-unified, loosely-confederated force. Funny, that.

Williams wasn't alone in having at Petraeus yesterday in D.C. — all three network anchors flew down for some facetime. Charlie Gibson asked whether the U.S. was "buying time for the Iraqis to get their act together - we're buying it with American lives, and they're not holding up their end of the bargain" (Petraues said he was "frustrated" twice during that interview).* Katie Couric clarified herself on al Qaeda, noting that it they were "just a small part of the problem" in the insurgency (Petraues returned to his position that they were the most destructive) and challenged Petraeus on the charges that " you all are manipulating data" (he stood by his data and said, if anything, the military's data was more complete). Note that Petraues did these three half-hour segments one by one, remaining as generally unflappable as he did during two days of hearings, under pretty challenging and skillful questioning by all three anchors. Which is why his backtrack on al Qaeda with Williams was even more significant to behold.

Brian Williams Interviews General Petraeus (27 min) [NBC]
Katie Couric Interviews General Petraeus (30.06 min) [CBS]
Charlie Gibson Interviews General Petraeus (2.26 min) (full interview not online) [ABC]

Related:
Frank Rich: As The Iraqis Stand Down, We'll Stand Up [NYT]
The Myth of AQI [Washington Monthly]
Transcript of Iraq Hearing Statements [CNN]

*Also frustrating: Trying to watch this coverage on the ABC site, where they only have two short clips from Gibson's Petraeus interview (1:22 here and 2:26 here), sandwiched on either side by commercials &mdsah; which you can't pause, by the way — if you try, it opens up a news window for the advertiser, which is totally annoying. More annoying: Unlike NBC and CBS, ABC offers no simulcast of the broadcast, at all, just individual clips (with their own individual commercials). They've got a 3 pm pre-broadcast webcast, also available on iTunes, but otherwise, if you miss the 6:30pm you're outta luck. Charlie Gibson, you make it hard for a girl to get to know you.

Comments

[RogueCowboy]

Size of the Al Qaeda Terrorist Force in Iraq that can not be contained with 200,000 Iraqi Security Forces that can operate with minimal Allied Support(50,000 US Troops, 5,000 Allied Troops:

The State Department's Bureau of Intelligence and Research (INR), which arguably has the best track record for producing accurate intelligence assessments, last year estimated that AQI's membership was in a range of "more than 1,000." When compared with the military's estimate for the total size of the insurgency—between 20,000 and 30,000 full-time fighters—this figure puts AQI forces at around 5 percent.
When turning to the question of manpower, military officials told the New York Times in August that of the roughly 24,500 prisoners in U.S. detention facilities in Iraq (nearly all of whom are Sunni), just 1,800—about 7 percent—claim allegiance to al-Qaeda in Iraq. Moreover, the composition of inmates does not support the assumption that large numbers of foreign terrorists, long believed to be the leaders and most hard-core elements of AQI, are operating inside Iraq. In August, American forces held in custody 280 foreign nationals—slightly more than 1 percent of total inmates.

What's the real number of Al Qaeda in Iraq still on the "BATTLEFIELD"? Apparently it is less than 2,000 yet we need 170,000 troops and the help of 200,000 Iraqi Security Forces for another to keep them at bay until next fall. Then over 50,000 US troops and over 350,000 Iraqi Security Forces will be needed for the foreseeable future.
Give me a break!

http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2007/0710.tilghman.html

[johnnyjust]

How dare he mention our enemies more than the allotted amount?

Silly stuff, plays well in Frisco, no doubt.

I suppose if we ignore them, Al Qaeda will disappear. It worked during the Clinton regime, and has worked well around the world since.

[ajax2]

Petraeus spent more time rehearsing his AEI report on Iraq in August (see his calendar) that he saw al Qaeda in his humus. His boss Adm. Fallon got it right, Petraeus is a 'kiss ass chicken shit'.

[wadenelson1]

Ok, from now on, whenever GWB or Betrayus says "Al Quaeda," go flush the toilet.

[Marlyn]

The General says "We have have huge interests in Iraq."

WE do? What might that be? What are these HUGE INTERESTS ????

[madinmanassas]

How do you become an "Affiliate" of al Qaeda? Is there paperwork you need to complete? Is there a licensing fee? Can you become a subsidiary? Is there a minimum number of bombs you need to keep in inventory? What happens if you use Iran's bombs? Do you violate your license and have to change your sign? Is there dues or subscriptions? If you violate your license (as Rice cakes once said) are you still in "Cahoots"? Do these people have a friggin clue who they are fighting? What is the average IQ of the 30% who still support this bastard?

[truthyguy]

Bottom line is that Bush started the Iraq war on lies, he refuses to accept responsibility for his actions (which is perfectly consistent with his younger years) and there is no way out of this mess except withdrawal.

160,000 soldiers are incapable of stopping 27,000,000 Iraqis from killing each other in an argument over which of their (by today's standards) ignorant prophets was the true God on earth. We need to get the hell out of there, and if they want to kill each other, let them. And don't give me any bullshit about the republicans not wanting a genocide; they don't seem to give a shit about Darfur.

[Marlyn]

"don't give me any bullshit about the republicans not wanting a genocide"

RIGHT! The republicans go on and on about how we shouldn't have given up in Vietnam ... more war, more war they said, as if killing was ok.

BUT then they argued that poor people were killed because we pulled out.

[TerryFL]

.

Brian is home practicing in front of a mirror: Return on Success, over and over again.

.

[bythePeopleforthePeople]

what a clusterfuck

[Lusmu]

"Katie Couric clarified herself on al Qaeda, noting that it they were "just a small part of the problem" in the insurgency (Petraues returned to his position that they were the most destructive) and challenged Petraeus on the charges that " you all are manipulating data" (he stood by his data and said, if anything, the military's data was more complete)"

But didn't the GAO director just testify, that the military would not provide the data for the last month to them even when asked? So, even here Petraeus was at best being disingenuous.

[GhostintheMachine]

The square in front of the mosque, a trash-covered wasteland between ruined rows of houses, fills up with people at the end of Friday prayers. Children hang on the American soldiers like grapes on a vine, plucking at their trousers, vying for their attention, for a glance, a piece of candy, a dollar, gazing up at the big foreigners as if they were gods.

The Americans run into acquaintances in the crowd. After being stationed in the city for 10 months, they have become a familiar sight. Bearded men greet the soldiers with hugs and kisses, and passersby hand them cold cans of lemonade. "Thank you, Mister," "Hello, Mister," "How are you, Mister?" they say. They talk about paint for schools and soccer jerseys, and they invite the Americans over for lunch. The Iraqis pose for photos with them, making "V's" for "victory" with their fingers.

[GhostintheMachine]

An Iraqi man saved the lives of four U.S. Soldiers and eight civilians when he intercepted a suicide bomber during a Concerned Citizens meeting in the town of al-Arafia Aug. 18.
The incident occurred while Soldiers from 3rd Squadron, 1st Cavalry Regiment, were talking with members of the al-Arafia Concerned Citizens, a volunteer community group, at a member’s house…
The citizen’s actions saved the lives of four U.S. Soldiers and eight civilians…
“He could have run behind us or away from us, but he made the decision to sacrifice himself to protect everyone. Having talked with his father, I was told that even if he would have known the outcome before hand, he wouldn’t have acted differently.”
Capt. Brian Gilbert, of Boise, Idaho, the commander of Company D, 1st Battalion, 15th Infantry Regiment, currently attached to 3-1 Cavalry, echoed Kane’s sentiment.
“I spoke with the father,” Gilbert said. “He said he has no remorse in his son’s death because he died saving American Soldiers.”

[GhostintheMachine]

An Irritating Contraction

Ramadi is an irritating contradiction of almost everything the world thinks it knows about Iraq -- it is proof that the US military is more successful than the world wants to believe. Ramadi demonstrates that large parts of Iraq -- not just Anbar Province, but also many other rural areas along the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers -- are essentially pacified today. This is news the world doesn't hear: Ramadi, long a hotbed of unrest, a city that once formed the southwestern tip of the notorious "Sunni Triangle," is now telling a different story, a story of Americans who came here as liberators, became hated occupiers and are now the protectors of Iraqi reconstruction.

[GhostintheMachine]

FALLUJAH, IRAQ -- The signatures of war are everywhere: bombed-out buildings pockmarked with bullet holes, sheets hanging in the windows, rubble aplenty.

But amid all this in Fallujah, a gritty Sunni city of about 400,000 that witnessed a devastating US offensive in November 2004, life is beginning to return to normal. More shops are open to sell wheelbarrows and toys, and workers feverishly paint new cement barriers, some with elaborate murals.

The signs of this restoration illustrate the successes throughout Anbar Province that Gen. David Petraeus testified about before Congress on Monday.

"The change in the security situation in Anbar Province has, of course, been particularly dramatic.... A year ago the province was assessed as 'lost' politically. Today, it is a model of what happens when local leaders and citizens decide to oppose Al Qaeda and reject its Taliban-like ideology," he told lawmakers.

In the general's assessment of progress in Iraq, specifically relating to the "surge" of troops that placed more than 30,000 troops in Iraq by mid-June, he held out Anbar as a success story, even though the gains here began before the increase in troop levels. But the additional forces, he said, allowed the US to build on the achievements there, chiefly bolstering the tribal rejection of Al Qaeda-linked elements and other insurgent groups.

[GhostintheMachine]

Marines on the ground indeed see the progress here that General Petraeus, along with US Ambassador Ryan Crocker, testified about in Washington.

"From the beginning of the deployment until now, the change is really quite remarkable," says Marine 2nd Lt. Eric Dwyer, who commands a joint security station with Americans and Iraqis in the Jolan district of Fallujah. He was deployed to Anbar in January, just before the beginning of the surge of troops.

One junior enlisted Marine, returning from his two-week break at home, says he wished he'd never gone back because now he faces another five months before the end of his deployment. Yet, he says, when he does leave altogether, in February, he feels as if he will miss the unfolding of what he sees as good news here. "I want to see what happens."

While the successes here have largely been the result of winning over Sunni sheikhs, many of those leaders say that level of support does have an expiration date.

One is a Sunni sheikh from Fallujah. Sheikh Salam Ajimi is a supporter of US forces and has been part of the turnaround. But he recognizes that while Anbaris appreciate the increased security here, they'd also like their country back.

"All the Iraqi people, they don't like the occupation, but sometimes you have to do things and sometimes you have to cooperate with the other side," says Mr. Ajimi, noting that "our biggest problems are with Iran."

[Marlyn]

"when he does leave altogether, in February, he feels as if he will miss the unfolding of what he sees as good news"

NO HURRY we will be there for decades.