Nevada delegation reacts to Petraeus along party lines

WASHINGTON -- Although he has voted consistently against efforts to change U.S. military policy in Iraq, Rep. Dean Heller on Monday seemed less than convinced by the testimony of Gen. David Petraeus.

"I look forward to reviewing the full report (by Petraeus) to determine for myself the extent of our progress in Iraq and what degree of U.S. involvement should be necessary in the future," the Nevada Republican said in a statement.

"Our role in Iraq is not an opened-ended one, and the ultimate responsibility for Iraq lies in the hands of the Iraqi people," Heller said.

Heller's comments about Petraeus' testimony were less enthusiastic than those of another Nevada Republican, Rep. Jon Porter.

"I think the highlight is that we may be seeing up to 30,000 troops coming home because of the efforts of the general, and we're making progress," said Porter, who visited Iraq in August.

Petraeus' testimony underscored the importance of following the advice of "professionals with boots on the ground ... and not listen to Washington pols," Porter said.

Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., said the progress report on the surge in Iraq contained "some encouraging news. Our military objectives are being met, and violence and death are down dramatically."

"Credit goes to our troops who have integrated themselves into local communities and ensured that security and basic services are provided," Ensign said in a prepared statement. "This bottom-up approach has created a successful working relationship with local Iraqi leaders."

Sen. Harry Reid and Rep. Shelley Berkley, both D-Nev., described Petraeus' testimony as more of the same from the Bush administration.

"Clearly, continuing to pursue the president's flawed escalation policy until at least July 2008 is not in the national interest of the United States," Reid said in a statement.

Berkley said she predicted what Petraeus would say three months ago, and "I'm sorry that I was so prophetic."

Berkley said Congress is unlikely to force Bush to change course, and it will be up to the next president to make tough decisions about Iraq.

"The very fact that (Osama) bin Laden is becoming a matinee idol instead of rotting in some jail or having justice done to him after the terrorist attack on this nation demonstrates the failure of this administration's policy," Berkley said.