Political Quotes

“as I have looked back on my years here, one of the chapters I have enjoyed the most is the debates we have had together, and this is not in the nature of a debate, Mr. President, but I do ask the Senator who now--in your current capacity and your long experience in foreign relations, you probably have a better grip than most of us as to the likelihood--and you mentioned it--of the political reconciliation taking place in Iraq. I am talking about the top down, not the smaller, but little things that happened in Al Anbar--which are very positive, but I don't think you can grow political reconciliation all the way from the bottom up. It has to come from the top down. Our good friend here, Senator Levin, and I were there in Iraq a few weeks ago and we could not find any basis for projecting when that might come to pass. That is the very thing that underpins the entire policy we are pursuing. Because we all acknowledge a military solution is not there. It has to be a political reconciliation from the top down--albeit to get some form of unity government--maybe an adaptation of what the Senator is now advocating. But what is the Senator's projection of the likelihood of that occurring?”