Should the Bush administration have taken members of Congress into confidence prior to the initiative?
In all likelihood they did it (rushed the deal through) deliberately. If you had given them three months to attack it would have been like shooting fish in a barrel. People who are opposed to this deal would have had a field day. So, in a sense, the administration was quite deft in a strange kind of way. But it would have been nice if they had taken my senator (Senator Richard Lugar, Indiana Republican) into confidence. (Mr Lugar chairs the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee whose approval is vital for the deal to become a reality. According to congressional sources, Mr Lugar is upset he had not been consulted.) Q: Are you optimistic about this deal becoming a reality? A: In a sense I am compelled to be optimistic because I see it as a turning point in the Indo-U.S. relationship. If the U.S. is genuinely serious in working with India as a major and emerging power rather than mouthing platitudes, then this deal really does need to go through. I am more than aware of the odds. B
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- Should the Bush administration have taken members of Congress into confidence prior to the initiative?
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