WASHINGTON — House Democrats on Thursday accused Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice of grossly mismanaging diplomatic efforts in Iraq and concealing information from Congress, putting a visibly frustrated Rice on the defensive.
At a hearing by a congressional watchdog committee, Democratic lawmakers said the State Department under Rice had been too lax with armed security contractors, ignored corruption at the highest levels of the Iraqi government and was sloppy in overseeing construction of the costly new U.S. Embassy in Baghdad.
“I think there was a huge gap between what she said and reality,” said Rep. Henry Waxman, chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.
Waxman, D-Calif., and other Democrats said they would not call on Rice to resign, noting that their frustration is with the Bush administration’s policies rather than Rice alone.
“If you just change the deck chairs, it’s not going to change the policy,” said Rep. Peter Welch, D-Vt., a committee member.
The hearing gave Democrats the venue to hammer the administration on the war. Thus far, they have been unable to pass veto-proof legislation ordering troops home from Iraq.
The usually unflappable Rice became frustrated at several points, including a tense exchange with Welch on whether Iraq’s prime minister, Nouri al-Maliki, was corrupt. Since April, al-Maliki has required that Cabinet-level corruption investigations first receive his approval.
Such a policy, Welch and other Democrats say, is tantamount to blanket immunity for al-Maliki and his ministers.
When repeatedly pressed to say whether she thought al-Maliki was covering up fraud and abuse, Rice said she would not respond to rumors.
After the hearing, Waxman said there was a gap between Rice’s “very smooth presentation” and the facts. Rice said the State Department was invested in stopping corruption, but Waxman said she was unfamiliar with al-Maliki’s corruption policy and that department insiders tell lawmakers its efforts are dysfunctional.
