SARASOTA, FL - Christine Jennings today released the following statement regarding the testimony of General David Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker before the House Armed Services and Foreign Affairs Committees:

"As General Petraeus and Ambassador Crocker testify about the situation on the ground in Iraq, we are at a critical time. What we are learning is that meaningful political progress in Iraq has not occurred, and that we need a change from the President's failed strategy.

"I have been against the Iraq War since the beginning. Now in our fifth year, President Bush and Congressman Buchanan continue to oppose a new strategy to win the peace and bring our brave men and women home. The Iraq War has cost our nation 3,759 lives, nearly $565 billion, and our military is dangerously over-extended.

"Our troops are stretched thin and we have not seen the meaningful political progress in Iraq that the President's surge was intended to provide. It is time for a new direction in the Iraq war. We must begin to responsibly redeploy our troops so that America can refocus our efforts on protecting our national security and winning the global war on terror."