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Bush Tells Congress He Makes Decisions on Troops for Iraq
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http://enews.voanews.com/t?ctl=15F596B:A6F02AD83191E1601127795B225379F29574F7DCC14957C0 US President says
some lawmakers are condemning plan before it has had a chance to work





George W. Bush

President Bush has had strong words for members of Congress who oppose
his new Iraq strategy, saying "I am the decision maker" on sending
more troops.

The president said some lawmakers are condemning the plan before it
has had a chance to work, and added that they have an obligation to
come up with their own plan.

Mr. Bush spoke to reporters after meeting with Defense Secretary
Robert Gates and top military commanders at the White House Friday.
The president thanked the U.S. Senate for confirming Army Lieutenant
General David Petraeus to become the new top U.S. commander in Iraq.

The vote in the Senate approving the nomination of General Petraeus
was unanimous, at 81-0.

On Wednesday, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee passed a
non-binding resolution declaring the deployment of additional troops
to Iraq is not in the national interest. That resolution is to go to
the full Senate for debate as early as next week.

Mr. Bush's new Iraq strategy includes sending an additional 21,500
troops into Iraq to bolster security.



Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.




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