Retired Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, in the Democratic weekly radio address, acknowledged that Bush's escalation strategy this year had improved security in Iraq. But he said Iraqi political leaders had failed to make "hard choices necessary to bring peace to their country."
"There is no evidence that the Iraqis will choose to do so in the near future or that we have an ability to force that result," said Sanchez, an increasingly vocal critic of what he called Bush administration policy failures in Iraq.
He endorsed the latest attempt by Democrats in the House of Representatives to use Iraq-war funding legislation to push for a reduction of U.S. troops. The House passed a measure last week that would have set a goal of withdrawing all U.S. combat troops from Iraq by December 15, 2008, but Republicans in the Senate blocked it.
Such attempts have regularly failed to overcome Bush's opposition and a reduction in violence in recent months has eased some of the political pressure on the White House for a change in strategy.
But Sanchez urged a rapid cut in the U.S. military presence by shifting the troops' main mission away from combat, and he said the House measure "makes the proper preparation" for a troop reduction.
"It is well past time to adopt a new approach in Iraq that will improve chances to produce stability in the Middle East," he said. "I urge our political leaders to put aside partisan considerations and unite to lessen the burden our troops and their families have been under for nearly five years.
"There is no evidence that the Iraqis will choose to do so in the near future or that we have an ability to force that result," said Sanchez, an increasingly vocal critic of what he called Bush administration policy failures in Iraq.
He endorsed the latest attempt by Democrats in the House of Representatives to use Iraq-war funding legislation to push for a reduction of U.S. troops. The House passed a measure last week that would have set a goal of withdrawing all U.S. combat troops from Iraq by December 15, 2008, but Republicans in the Senate blocked it.
Such attempts have regularly failed to overcome Bush's opposition and a reduction in violence in recent months has eased some of the political pressure on the White House for a change in strategy.
But Sanchez urged a rapid cut in the U.S. military presence by shifting the troops' main mission away from combat, and he said the House measure "makes the proper preparation" for a troop reduction.
"It is well past time to adopt a new approach in Iraq that will improve chances to produce stability in the Middle East," he said. "I urge our political leaders to put aside partisan considerations and unite to lessen the burden our troops and their families have been under for nearly five years.