Trupiano & McCotter on the War in Iraq
Article published Apr 13, 2006
Congressional candidates stake out positions on war in Iraq
BY HUGH GALLAGHER STAFF WRITER
Observer & Eccentric
www.observer-eccentiric.com
With poll numbers showing eroding support for the war in Iraq and for President George W. Bush, despite a healthy national economy, the war is looming as a major issue in this year's congressional election.
Democrats are hoping that concern about the war and anxiety about the local economy may help them regain control of one or both houses of Congress.
In the 11th Congressional District, incumbent Republican U.S. Rep. Thaddeus McCotter and Democratic challenger Tony Trupiano are both critical of Bush's handling of the war, but offer different perspectives on what needs to be done.
In separate interviews, McCotter and Trupiano shared their views on Iraq and other international issues.
In November, McCotter joined five other Republican congressmen in calling on the president to appoint an independent panel to review U.S. efforts in Iraq. In March, an Iraq Study Group was formed, co-chaired by former Secretary of State James Baker, a Republican, and former Democratic Congressman Lee Hamilton, now director of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. The bipartisan group includes Robert M. Gates, Rudolph W. Giuliani, Vernon Jordan, Leon Panetta, William Perry, Charles Robb and Alan Simpson.
"It can't hurt, whatever it does," McCotter said. "It's a panel of people who have been distinguished throughout their careers, Republicans and Democrats, who are not invested in some of the mistakes that have been made."
McCotter has been a supporter of the war in Iraq and argues that despite the deprivations of the war, life is better in Iraq then it was under Saddam Hussein. But he has been critical of the Bush administration for its prosecution of the war and for not building solid grass-roots support from the various factions within the country.
Trupiano said he opposed the war from the beginning.
"We haven't been smart, we haven't been tough," he said. "There is no level where we can see measurable results."
Recently, prominent Shiite leaders have requested that Prime Minister Ibrahim Jafaari, also a Shiite, withdraw from seeking a second term because of an inability to form a government with support from the Sunni and Kurdish minorities.
The split between different Shiite factions comes at a time of escalating violence between the dominant Shiite
Muslims and the minority Sunni, who once controlled the country's government under Hussein.
Some have called the violence between the two groups the beginnings of a civil war.
"If this were a full-fledged civil war, this debate wouldn't be happening," McCotter said.
He said the government, police and army would be collapsing if this were a civil war. He said insurgents are taking advantage of the long-held animosity between the two Muslim sects and the instability of the Iraq government.
"What you have is a struggle among the Shiite, especially those concerned about the Iranian influence," he said.
McCotter said the violence between Sunni and Shiite is being excacerbated by the insurgents.
