Brownback leading conservative candidate for President from the GOP does not support Bush’s new plan to increase troops in Iraq. President Bush has lost support from all sides on his plan. Do you think it is fair to the troops for the President to go forward with very little support? Do you think it is time for everyone in Congress to go on the record if they support the new plan before President Bush sends in more troops?

BAGHDAD – U.S. Senator Sam Brownback today commented on President Bush’s proposal to increase the number of troops deployed to Iraq.

“I do not believe that sending more troops to Iraq is the answer,” said Brownback. “Iraq requires a political rather than a military solution. In the last two days, I have met with Prime Minister Maliki, with two deputy presidents and the president of the Kurdish region. I came away from these meetings convinced that the United States should not increase its involvement until Sunnis and Shi’a are more willing to cooperate with each other instead of shooting at each other.”

During a two day visit to Iraq, Brownback met with several Iraqi and U.S. officials, including U.S. Generals Raymond Odierno and George Casey, Jr., and U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Zalmay Khalilzad.

Brownback continued, “The Kurdish leadership does not wish to get in the middle of a sectarian fight between the Sunni and Shi’a, and the United States should not either. Instead of surging troops, we must press the Iraqi government to reach a political solution. We cannot achieve a political solution while a military solution is imposed. The best way to reach a democratic Iraq is to empower the Iraqis to take responsibility for their own nation building.”