"One of the interesting things about Petraeus is he is much more politically sophisticated," said one scholar who has advised Petraeus. "He understands not only that he needs advice, but that advice-givers are part of a community that develops the general conventional wisdom on the war."
Two of the scholars who visited Iraq, Kenneth M. Pollack and Michael E. O'Hanlon of the Brookings Institution, wrote a newspaper op-ed after their visit expressing a measure of optimism for Petraeus' strategy -- and were criticized for succumbing to military propaganda.
Biddle said he believed that by bringing in outside experts, Petraeus was simply trying to help foster an informed debate, not execute a snow job.
"This is a guy trying to do good government," Biddle said.
An optimist by nature
Even before he has spoken, Petraeus' appearance in Washington on Monday has been criticized by Democrats. Lawmakers opposed to the troop buildup have linked Petraeus to Bush and questioned the accuracy of some of the information that the military in Baghdad has released.
Aides to Petraeus and to Bush have sought to emphasize the Iraq commander's independence from the White House. Although Petraeus gave his recommendation to Bush, the general's aides have not provided his prepared testimony to the White House.
Still, by his nature Petraeus is an optimist, and his version of a balanced assessment could strike opponents of the current strategy as overly positive. Besides, there is little doubt that Petraeus and Bush are on the same page. The two men have spoken weekly about Iraq and the general's views about the strategy.
"All those encounters do lead to something," said the senior administration official. "And it could be a fairly common perspective."
julian.barnes@latimes.com
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(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX) David Howell Petraeus
Born: Nov. 7, 1952.
1974: Graduates from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.
1983: Gen. George C. Marshall Award winner as the top graduate at the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College.
1987: Earns doctorate in International Relations from Princeton University.
1991: During a training exercise, Petraeus is shot in the chest. The bullet just misses his heart.
2000: Petraeus breaks his pelvis in a sky-diving accident.
2001 to 2002: Petraeus serves 10 months in Bosnia, helping command the NATO mission.
2003 to 2004: Leads the 101st Airborne Division during U.S. invasion of Iraq. His division is later assigned to Mosul, where Petraeus develops counter-insurgency theories.
June 2004 to September 2005: Oversees the training of the Iraqi military.
October 2005 to January 2007: Serves as commanding general, Combined Arms Center at Ft. Leavenworth, overseeing production of the Army's Counterinsurgency Field Manual.
February 2007: Takes charge of the Multi-National Force -- Iraq, following nomination by President Bush and confirmation by the Senate, becoming the top U.S. commander in Iraq.
Source: Times research
