McCain On Sanchez

A good point, I'd say:

I honor and respect his service to the country.  I respect anyone who spends their adult life in the military as he has, but I respectfully have to say, General Sanchez, why didn't when I was in Baghdad, meeting with you and Jerry Bremer five years ago -- well, four years ago -- and I said, "You don't have enough troops here.  You're going to fail.  Looting is going on, Al-Qaeda is coming in, you're going to have these problems.  Why aren't you settling the de-Ba'athification issue, etc etc."  And he defended the present policy [at that time], he said it was succeeding, and he testified before the Armed Services Committee, of which I am a member, the same way.

When we confirm a senior officer to a position in the military, there's always a standard question that is asked, and that they always say Yes to, and that is "When asked, will you give your candid and personal opinion in answer to a question by a member of the committee?"  They always say Yes.  He said Yes.  He was asked in several hearings about the strategy, and he not only didn't complain about it -- in all due respect again -- but he supported it.  And I wish he had done that back when he was on active duty.