How many hearings has the New Democratic-led Congress held on Iraq war? 52

This kind of puts things in perspective.

http://speaker.gov/issues?id=0018

NEW DEMOCRATIC-LED CONGRESS IS EXERCISING OVERSIGHT AND DEMANDING ACCOUNTABILITY ON THE IRAQ WAR

A List of 52 Hearings Held On Issues Related to Iraq War

Tuesday, January 9th
Senate Foreign Relations Committee – CLOSED full committee briefing on the situation in Iraq

Wednesday, January 10th
Senate Foreign Relations Committee – full committee hearing on “Securing America’s Interests in Iraq: The Remaining Options. Where We Are: The Current Situation in Iraq.”

Thursday, January 11th
House Armed Services Committee – full committee hearing on the way forward in Iraq

House Foreign Affairs Committee – full committee hearing on “Iraq, Part I”

Senate Foreign Relations Committee – full committee hearing on “Securing America’s Interests in Iraq: The Remaining Options. The Administration’s Plan for Iraq”

Senate Foreign Relations Committee – full committee hearing on “Securing America’s Interests in Iraq: The Remaining Options. Troop Surge, Partition, Withdrawal or Strengthen the Center?”

Senate Select Committee on Intelligence – full committee hearing on “Annual Threat Assessment”

Friday, January 12th
Senate Armed Services Committee – full committee hearing on Iraq

Tuesday, January 16th
House Armed Services Committee - Seapower and Expeditionary Forces Subcommittee hearing on Marine Corps force protection equipment for Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom

Senate Judiciary Committee – full committee hearing on “The Plight of Iraqi Refugees”

Wednesday, January 17th
House Armed Services Committee – full committee hearing on alternative perspectives on the President’s strategy for Iraq

House Appropriations Committee – CLOSED. Defense Subcommittee holds hearing on Army and Marine Corps Readiness

House Appropriations Committee – CLOSED. Defense Subcommittee holds closed hearing on Army and Marine Operations and Equipment Reconstruction

House Foreign Affairs Committee – full committee hearing on “Iraq, Part II”

Senate Foreign Relations Committee – full committee hearing on “Securing America’s Interests in Iraq: The Remaining Options. Regional Diplomatic Strategy”

Thursday, January 18th
House Armed Services Committee – full committee hearing on approaches to audit of reconstruction and support activities in Iraq

House Armed Services Committee - Air and Land Forces Subcommittee hearing on Army force protection equipment for Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom

House Appropriations Committee – CLOSED. Defense Subcommittee holds closed hearing on Guard and Reserve Readiness

House Appropriations Committee – CLOSED. Defense Subcommittee holds closed hearing on Navy and Air Force Readiness

House Budget Committee – full committee hearing on “Budgeting for War Costs”

House Select Intelligence Committee – full committee hearing on Worldwide Threats

Senate Foreign Relations Committee – full committee hearing on “Securing America’s Interests in Iraq: The Remaining Options. Military and Security Strategy”

Friday, January 19th
House Foreign Affairs Committee – full committee hearing on “Iraq: The Baker-Hamilton Commission Report. Part III”

House Appropriations Committee – Defense Subcommittee holds hearing on Military Medical Readiness

Monday, January 22nd
House Appropriations Committee – CLOSED. Defense Subcommittee holds closed hearing on Intelligence Readiness

Tuesday, January 23rd
House Armed Services Committee – full committee hearing on Iraq’s Effect on Total Force Readiness

Senate Foreign Relations Committee – full committee hearing on “Securing America’s Interests in Iraq: The Remaining Options. Alternative Plans: Federalism, Side with the Majority, Strategic Redeployment, or Negotiate?”

Senate Armed Services Committee – full committee hearing on “Nomination of Lieutenant General David H. Petraeus, USA, to be General and Commander, Multi-National Forces – Iraq”

Wednesday, January 24th
House Select Intelligence Committee – CLOSED full committee hearing on Iraq Intelligence Support to Policymakers

Senate Foreign Relations Committee – full committee meeting on S. Con. Res. 2, the Biden-Hagel-Levin-Snowe Bipartisan Iraq War Resolution

Thursday, January 25th
Senate Foreign Relations Committee – full committee hearing on “Securing America’s Interests in Iraq: The Remaining Options. Reconstruction Strategy”

Senate Foreign Relations Committee – full committee hearing on “Securing America’s Interests in Iraq: The Remaining Options. Political Strategy”

Senate Armed Services Committee – full committee hearing on “The Current Situation in Iraq and the Administration’s Recently Announced Strategy for Continued United States Assistance tot eh Iraqi Government and for an Increased United States Military Presence in Iraq”

Friday, January 26th
House Appropriations Committee – Defense Subcommittee hearing on Military Medical Readiness

Tuesday, January 30th
Senate Armed Services Committee – full committee hearing on the Nomination of Admiral William J. Fallon, USN, for Reappointment to the Grade of Admiral and to be Commander, United States Central Command

Senate Foreign Relations Committee – full committee hearing on “Securing America’s Interests in Iraq: The Remaining Options. Alternative Plans: The Iraq Study Group”

Senate Judiciary Committee – full committee hearing on “Exercising Congress’ Constitutional Power to End a War”

Wednesday, January 31st
House Armed Services Committee – Readiness and Air Subcommittee and Land Forces Subcommittee hearing on Army Equipment Reset/Maintaining Military Equipment in Iraq

Senate Judiciary Committee – full committee hearing on “Examining Recommendations for Improvements to Iraq’s Justice System”

Senate Armed Services Committee - CLOSED full committee briefing on the Iraq “surge” plan

Senate Foreign Relations Committee – full committee hearing on “Securing America’s Interests in Iraq: The Remaining Options. Iraq in the Strategic Context, Part I”

Thursday, February 1st
Senate Armed Services Committee – full committee hearing “The Nomination of General George W. Casey, Jr., USA, for Reappointment to the Grade of General and to be Chief of Staff, United States Army”

Senate Foreign Relations Committee – full committee hearing on “Securing America’s Interests in Iraq: The Remaining Options. Iraq in the Strategic Context, Part II”

Monday, February 5th
House Select Intelligence Committee – CLOSED full committee briefing on the National Intelligence Estimate on Iraq

Tuesday, February 6th
House Oversight & Government Reform Committee – Full committee hearing on Waste, Fraud & Abuse: Part I – Iraq Reconstruction

Senate Armed Services Committee – full committee hearing on the 2007 and 2008 war supplemental requests in review of the Defense Authorization Request for Fiscal Year 2008 and the Future Years Defense Program

Senate Budget Committee – full committee hearing on “War Costs”

Wednesday, February 7th
House Armed Services Committee – full committee hearing on the FY 2008 Department of Defense Budget

House Oversight & Government Reform Committee – full committee hearing on Waste, Fraud & Abuse: Part II – Iraq Private Contractor Oversight

Senate Select Committee on Intelligence – holds a CLOSED hearing on Iraq

Thursday, February 8th
House Appropriations Committee – CLOSED. Select Intelligence Oversight Panel holds closed hearing on the proposed FY 2007 war supplemental appropriations bill

House Appropriations Committee – State, Foreign Operations and Related Programs Subcommittee holds oversight hearing on assistance programs in Iraq

Which is a very good thing.

i had mixed feelings about Reid's "great compromise" on Iraq. he seemed to support the idea that it was critical to get a buy-in from at least some republicans and that starting with a non-binding resolution was the best way to do that. as much as i saw this as tokenism, i thought it was worth a try so that the Senate could be on record as directly opposing bush's madness. so far, the compromise has failed. perhaps it still has a chance but time's a wasting.

of course, all that only has to do with the "surge". the Dems' Progressive Caucus in the House is way, way ahead of Reid and the rest of the Senate. Of course, Senators like Kennedy and Feingold have called for various flavors of deadlines and funds cutoffs. Where is Reid on this? Where are the rest of the Democrats?

I guess your statement is fair: no one can say the Dems aren't doing anything. On the other hand, it's not all too clear whether they are doing anything either.

There is no way bush is going to end the war voluntarily which means the Dems have to stop him. The only path to do that, would be a cutoff of funds or impeachment (or the threat of impeachment) and subsequent removal from office. Hearings are great; oversight is great; the bottom line, though, is stopping the war. It's hard to give the Dems high marks on that - at least so far.

source: http://www.commondreams.org/views07/0208-21.htm

From here:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x161003#161059

Murtha is focusing first on readiness . . .

"At a closed-door meeting of Democrats, leaders reassured lawmakers that next week's symbolic vote would not be the last word, participants said. Rep. John Murtha, D-Pa., who chairs a subcommittee that oversees defense funding, told members he plans to try blocking funding for the deployment of troops in an upcoming bill paying for the war unless they meet high readiness standards."

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_IRAQ?SITE=AP&...


"At a hearing of the Congressional Progressive Caucus in January, Murtha said those conditions could include that no money be allocated for an escalation unless the military can meet normal “readiness” levels.

“We should not spend money to send people overseas unless they replenish the strategic reserve,” Murtha told that hearing. “If he wants to veto the bill,” Murtha said of Bush, “he won't have any money.”

http://www.dailyamerican.com/articles/2007/02/07/news/t...

And here's one you might not be so enamored with, but it's worth posting:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=273x124316