McCain says he didn't read NIE, either

Much like the Democratic debate Sunday night, the opening minutes of the GOP debate in New Hampshire tonight have been dominated by Iraq.

Arizona Senator John McCain said that, like Senator Hillary Clinton, he did not read a comprehensive National Intelligence Estimate briefing on Iraq before authorizing the war. Senator Sam Brownback of Kansas said he didn't remember reading it. US Representative Duncan Hunter of California, however, said he did read it. The question is significant because the NIE contained many caveats about the threat posed by Iraq and then-president Saddam Hussein.

Brownback also said that tomorrow he would introduce a political plan for Iraq that mirrors what Senator Joe Biden of Delaware, a Democratic presidential candidate, has proposed: dividing the country intro three distinct regions -- one Sunni, one Shia, and one Kurdish.

"Iraq is more three groups held together by exterior forces," he said.