Democrats rip Iraqi leader as weak

WASHINGTON -- Congressional Democrats lashed out at the new Iraqi prime minister yesterday, accusing Nouri al-Maliki of being a weak voice against Middle East terror even as President Bush welcomed Maliki as a courageous and ``strong partner" of the United States.

A day before his address to a joint session of Congress, Democrats derided Maliki for failing to denounce the radical Islamist group Hezbollah, whose kidnapping of two Israel soldiers and subsequent missile attack on Israel has triggered an intense Israeli offensive on southern Lebanon. The two-week battle has claimed the lives of more than 400 Lebanese and scores of Israelis.

``His refusal to condemn Hezbollah is painful. When it comes to the war on terror, we ask Prime Minister Maliki, where does he stand? What side is he on?" said Senator Charles E. Schumer , Democrat of New York. ``Iraq is supposed to be, in the words of our president, a great ally" and linchpin of Middle East democracy.

In a letter to Maliki, Schumer and other high-ranking Democrats wrote that the prime minister's published comments referring to ``Israeli aggression" were troublesome, noting that Maliki has not ruled out amnesty for Iraqi insurgents who have killed US soldiers. Democratic House lawmakers also pointed out that the Iraqi Parliament approved a resolution condemning Israel and its ``criminal aggression."

In addition, 20 Democratic congressmen wrote to House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert , Republican of Illinois, urging him to cancel Maliki's address. It was an unusual rebuke of a world leader -- particularly one who rose to power after the United States ousted former dictator Saddam Hussein and sponsored the elections that swept him into office. Republicans rejected the Democrats' idea and urged them to listen respectfully to the address; most Democrats are expected to attend.

Representative Christopher H. Shays , a Connecticut Republican whose support for the Iraq war has endangered his reelection, said the Democrats ``suddenly have decided that not only are they against the war, but they've decided to politicize the war."

Appearing with Maliki yesterday, Bush hinted that the two men had clashed on the Israeli offensive in Lebanon , saying they had a ``frank exchange of views on the situation." But the president applauded the ``remarkable and historical" visit of the prime minister, and endorsed a plan to shift US troops to Baghdad from other areas in Iraq to quell surging violence there.

``I assured him Americans will not abandon the Iraqi people," Bush said.

Although Maliki repeated his support for an immediate cease-fire in the Israel-Hezbollah battle, Bush reiterated that he wants a ``sustainable cease-fire that will bring about an end to violence."

Maliki's visit, scheduled well before Israel and Hezbollah began fighting, was initially meant to highlight the fledgling democracy in Iraq, a development Bush's supporters in the GOP-led Congress point to as a political success, against a grim backdrop of military and civilian deaths.

But Maliki faces a wary Congress today: While Democrats assailed Maliki -- and by extension, Bush's policy in Iraq -- public doubts about the war and the ongoing bloodshed have grown, prompting some Republicans to distance themselves from the president. Instead of showcasing the Republicans' traditional edge over Democrats on national security, Maliki's presence in the very chamber where GOP leaders enthusiastically backed the president's use of force against Iraq has become a reminder of a mission unfulfilled.

The war has become a pivotal issue for some Republicans facing tough reelection campaigns in the fall -- elections that could switch control of Congress to Democrats. At least one Democrat running for reelection -- Connecticut Senator Joseph I. Lieberman , a three-term incumbent -- trails an antiwar challenger in the polls less than two weeks before the primary.

As a result, Maliki ``faces a skeptical audience," said Lawrence Korb , a former Defense Department official in the Reagan administration who is now an analyst with the left-leaning Center for American Progress. ``Things [in Iraq] are getting worse rather than better. You can't keep putting a gloss on it."

Further, Republicans have made the defense of Israel a central part of their message, passing resolutions in support of the longtime US ally. The Democrats' remarks yesterday put the GOP in the awkward position of defending Maliki without endorsing his remarks about Israel.

Others noted that political pressures in Iraq keep Maliki from sharply attacking Hezbollah or mounting a strong defense of Israel. Representative Mark Foley , Republican of Florida, said US lawmakers need to understand Maliki's position. ``We're going to need every partner we can get," Foley said. ``Some are not going to be able to do the heavy lifting that we had hoped."

Republicans have long linked the Iraq war to a broader campaign against terrorism, insisting the United States must defeat insurgents and terrorists overseas to avoid terrorist attacks at home. More recently, as public support for the war has plummeted, the GOP has changed the terms of the national security debate, downplaying Iraq and focusing on government efforts to gather intelligence and hold detainees at Guantanamo Bay, which they say will prevent a terrorist attack.

By criticizing Maliki, however, the Democrats tied the unpopular war to the ongoing threat of terrorism, suggesting that free elections in Iraq failed to produce a leader who will be a strong US partner for Mideast democracy and peace.

In a letter to Maliki, Senate minority leader Harry Reid of Nevada and fellow Democrats Schumer and Senator Richard J. Durbin of Illinois wrote that Maliki's failure to condemn Hezbollah raises ``serious questions about whether Iraq under your leadership can play a constructive role in resolving the current crisis and bringing stability to the Middle East."

Representative Tom Reynolds , Republican of New York, urged his colleagues to hear Maliki out, but separated the prime minister's appearance from the volatile political issue of the war itself.

``No matter what your view is on the Iraq war, you have to respect the fact that [Maliki] is the leader of the second democracy in one of the most challenging neighborhoods in the Middle East," Reynolds said.