April 9, 2008: I happened to turn on my TV yesterday to catch some of the Senate's
Petraeus hearings. Senator Obama was provided his time at that moment.
I was interested in hearing what kind of questions the Senator would ask the General,
and I don't know if what I heard disappointed me or not. I wasn't disappointed in Obama's generic
questioning - sounded as though he'd been prepped for the occassion. And I wasn't disappointed
to hear his interrogation being one which was seeking to have responses bolstering his position
on Iraq.
He (condescendingly) seemed to indicate that Al Quida has a presence in Iraq, and that Iran
plays a role in supporting the group. His assertions that he spoke for all the sitting senators -
or at least was asking the questions of the same kind other committee members were asking,
seemed to be asked - actually stated - in a way to show his powers to unify. Anyhow, the one
question he repeatedly asked was how success in Iraq was to be measured - a question asked, it seemed
to me somewhat sarcastically. The senator repeatedly broke into the General's answers to restate
or define the question - and, as a lawyer, Obama should know that talking over the
witness's statements is not good form; in this case, it appeared to be a way to show that
he, Obama, was in control and wanted to make sure everyone knew that.
I was disappointed that the man who wants to be President didn't do a much better job of
questioning General Petraeus than a smart high school senior would have done. Maybe that's because,
as was stated by the Senator who gave his time to Obama, that Obama should be given the time
since he had a busy schedule. Too busy to do his job in a less haphazard way?
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