NBC Today - Transcript
NBC News Transcripts
SHOW: Today
HEADLINE: Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton and Senator Reed discuss situation in Iraq and Afghanistan
ANCHORS: KATIE COURIC
BODY:
KATIE COURIC, co-host:
On CLOSE UP this morning, Iraq. Democratic senators Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York and Jack Reed of Rhode Island have just returned from a trip to Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Senator Clinton and Senator Reed, good morning to both of you.
Senator HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON: Good morning, Katie.
Senator JACK REED: Good morning.
COURIC: Senator Clinton, let me start with you if I could. As we have been reporting on Sunday there was a massive firefight between US and Iraqi forces resulting in the reported deaths of 46 Iraqi fighters still wearing the uniform of Saddam's Fedayeen militia. What are your impressions of this situation in Iraq. How bad is it in your view?
Sen. CLINTON: Well, Katie, first of all, the military is doing a terrific job. I don't think we can overstate how committed and devoted they are to trying to bring about security. But it is still a very dangerous place as this incident on Sunday clearly demonstrates. They don't have enough of the right mix of troops in our opinion. We visited with not only the military, but the civilian-American representatives. And it became clear that we need more MPs, we need more intelligence, we need more civil affairs. We need a bigger presence. And as we train the Iraqi civil defense corps and the army and the police, we are still going to have to be there in large numbers in order to make sure that that works. Clearly, what we are doing now is not an effective strategy. We need to get the UN back in as quickly as possible to internationalize this. But I can't say enough positively about what our American military are doing on the ground. And it's not just with respect to security. They are the ones who are reopening the schools, fixing up the hospitals, creating the relationships with Iraqis on the ground that I think will give us a better chance than we currently have.
COURIC: Well, Senator Reed, since Senator Clinton brought that up, what-how are the soldiers-how are US forces holding up given the fact that November was the bloodiest month since so-called major combat operations ended with more than 70 US soldiers killed? What was your sense of morale?
Sen. REED: Morale was very high, Katie, particularly since they know approximately when they are leaving the country. That was one of the first major issues when I was there last July, the uncertainty of how long they would stay. That has been resolved. The morale is good. They understand they are doing a dangerous and difficult job. They are superb soldiers and Marines and airmen and women. We have a significant representation of our Reserve and National Guard components also. The concern that we both have is that at the end of this rotation next spring, those specialty troops, the psychological operations, the civil affairs troops will not adequately be replaced since we don't have them in our inventory of forces back in the United States.
COURIC: So Senator Clinton, what is the solution then?
Sen. CLINTON: Well, there is short term and medium and long term solutions. In the short term we have to move as quickly as possible to internationalize this with a new UN mandate. I am pleased that there's going to be some meetings in New York this week to try to get the arms around this to determine how we can get the UN back in. We need the legitimacy of the United Nations in order to move forward.
COURIC: Do you think the Bush administration would be recept-excuse me-receptive to that?
Sen. CLINTON: I think they have to be. And I think that would bring in more troops. And-and Katie, I don't want to forget about Afghanistan, because, you know, that is off the radar screen right now.
COURIC: Yeah, we will get to that in just a moment, I promise.
Sen. CLINTON: Good. Good.
COURIC: Let me ask you, though, about the president's visit to Iraq over the weekend to Baghdad, his surprise visit on Thanksgiving Day. Not surprisingly, it's getting mixed reviews depending on one's political views. Some have praised the president and said this was a huge morale boost for the troops who badly needed it. And others have say it's basically the president was staging a positive photo-op to boost his popularity. Where do you come down on the president's visit, Senator Clinton?
Sen. CLINTON: I think it was both, Katie. I applaud the president for going to Baghdad and seeing our troops. Any time our troops are in a conflict situation, the commander in chief's presence makes a huge difference. It sends a message that these young men and women are doing a job that is important to our country. On the other hand, it is not a substitute for a plan about how we're going to not only enhance security, which was the number one concern that everybody talked to about, especially the Iraqis that I met with. And it is not also a plan for how we're eventually going to create more legitimacy to a move towards self-governance for the Iraqis.
COURIC: Well let me ask you about that exit strategy, because it's been controversial, the notion of having caucuses and indirect elections rather than direct elections has been criticized by the head Shiite cleric and many, obviously, Iraqis are Shiites. Do you think an exit strategy is being crafted at sort of the risk of not establishing a true democracy in Iraq?
Sen. CLINTON: Well, I think an exit strategy, unfortunately, is being driven by our political calendar, not necessarily what's in the best interest of a long term stable Iraq. And that's one of the reasons why bringing the UN in would be a benefit for the Bush administration as well as the prospects for creating conditions that would lead to democracy. I hope that the administration takes these UN talks seriously that are going on. I hope that they will support a return of the United Nations, both in a capacity to determine the direction for self-government and to provide aid on the ground.
COURIC: Mm-hmm.
Sen. CLINTON: But then we still have to have more security. Once the UN comes back in, perhaps then we can be more successful in getting different and additional international troops in to help spell some of our American soldiers.
Sen. REED: We were encouraged that Ambassador Bremer asked for UN officials to monitor these upcoming elections or selection process. And frankly, we've spent a lot of attention on the military issues, but the political issues that are developing might be the more decisive. And we're in an awkward position and we want to quickly change the character from an occupation to a supporting legitimate government, but we might be rushing too quickly to do that.
COURIC: We are about out of time, Senator Clinton. What are your major-and Senator Reed, but I-I know you wanted to talk specifically about Afghanistan. So quickly if you could, what are your major concerns about what is going on in Afghanistan right now?
Sen. CLINTON: Well, I think that the political situation in Afghanistan is much more stable and on a better track than certainly in Iraq, but the security issues concerning the terrorists are not. We have a lot of activity along the border with Pakistan. We already have a NATO presence in Afghanistan, and I think both Senator Reed and I can't understand why there aren't more NATO troops. When they expanded their mandate last month to go beyond Kabul, they haven't yet put in the troops to demonstrate the commitment to that mandate. The Karsai government, we met with President Karzai, is doing a very commendable job of trying to bring the country together. They're going to have their constitutional lawyer jerga starting this month. But they need more security also. And that's where NATO comes in. And we're going to try to do everything we can to help push NATO to get additional troops into Afghanistan.
COURIC: All right. Well Senator Clinton and Senator Reed, thank you both so much...
Sen. REED: Thank you.
COURIC: ...for talking with us this morning. We appreciate it.
Sen. CLINTON: Thanks, Katie.