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Length: 3:47
ANDERSON COOPER: With the
battle over Iraq now consuming Washington, we turn to
CNN's Michael Ware for his take on what they're all
fighting about.
How long do you think it's going to be before there's
a sense of change on the ground or whether or not
this policy is working? I mean, we have heard from
George Casey, who says, look, by March, we should
know whether al-Maliki's government is living up to
their promises.
But, militarily, it doesn't seem like that's enough
time to let the -- to see any change in the strategy,
whether that's working or not.
MICHAEL WARE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Anderson, I
mean, it's a shame to say, but I don't think we
really need until March to know where the Maliki
government is going to be.
COOPER: You think we already know?
WARE: Oh, of course we already know. We have been
round this circle time and time again.
The Bush administration has turned to the Maliki
government as a fully fledged partner over and over
and over, yet it has failed to deliver every time.
COOPER: They say, this time is different. They say,
they see something in Maliki.
WARE: They have said that many times in the past,
too.
And we saw President Bush, in the State of the Union
address, as quickly as he came out and said, we're
now relying and calling upon the Iraqi government
even more than before, immediately he almost chided
or lectured them, and said we're now looking for you
to deploy more troops, to confront the radicals, and
to pull back these unnecessary restrictions.
So, I don't really think we need until March. And,
for the military strategy, at the end of the day,
Anderson, this new strategy, the surge of 21,500
troops, is not new.
COOPER: But, you know, critics will say, look, how
can you say that, because what is new is having
troops living with Iraqi troops in...
WARE: Oh...please.
COOPER: (LAUGHTER) You're not even letting me finish
the sentence.
WARE: Been there, done that. I mean...
COOPER: Really?
WARE: To some degree, this is an adoption, and
extrapolation upon the model we saw used in the town
of Tal Afar, near the Syrian border...
COOPER: Right.
WARE: ... since adopted in Ramadi, the --
essentially, the headquarters of al Qaeda.
So, yes, this will put more pressure on the death
squads, on the militias, on the insurgents in
Baghdad. And, yes, it will force them to adapt. But
it just displaces them. Does it destroy them? Does it
wipe them out? Does it change the dynamics that drive
them? Absolutely not.
COOPER: And this is a learning enemy. They learn from
-- they...
WARE: Oh, it's an adaptive -- and even President Bush
called them that last night in the State of the
Union.
And 21,500 troops, you might as well not bother,
Anderson. That's a drop in the bucket.
COOPER: I want to play something that Vice President
Cheney said to Wolf Blitzer today about Iraq, and
then talk about it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, "THE SITUATION ROOM")
BLITZER: You trust Nouri al Maliki?
CHENEY: I do. At this point, I don't have any reason
not to trust him.
BLITZER: Is he going to go after Muqtada al Sadr,
this anti-American...
CHENEY: I think...
BLITZER: ... Shiite cleric, who controls this Mahdi
army?
CHENEY: I think he has demonstrated -- I think he has
demonstrated a willingness to take on any elements
that violate the law.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COOPER: What do you think of that?
WARE: I think, with all due respect, the vice
president is spinning yet another line.
I mean, does he have any reason not to trust Nouri
al-Maliki? No, he can trust him to do exactly what
he's been doing. An, when it comes to the rebel
anti-American cleric, Muqtada al-Sadr, who has the
blood of American soldiers on his hands, we know
exactly what Maliki is going to do there, which is
essentially nothing. He can't afford to.
If he moves against Muqtada, it tears not only his
government but the country, apart. Muqtada put him in
power. And, militarily, neither the Iraqi security
forces, even if they wanted to -- and they don't --
nor the coalition or American forces, have the
ability to crush Muqtada, even militarily.
But Muqtada represents more than just tens of
thousands of militia fighters. He is a movement. He
has mobilized the disenfranchised Shia poor. So,
Muqtada is now a movement, not just a military enemy.
He can't be wiped out like that.
COOPER: That is scary.
Michael Ware, thanks. Appreciate it.