Jim Webb, you wanted him you got him!

Sen Jim Webb on ABC This Week with George Stephanopolous trying to say he is for a withdrawal by saying he is not for a withdrawal;

STEPHANOPOULOS : But you Senate Democrats are trying to put more pressure on the Maliki government. You said — you've introduced legislation this week, Senator Reid, the majority leader has, calling for a goal of getting all combat forces out of Iraq by next March 31st.

But this summer, you told Joe Klein of Time magazine — I want to show what you told Joe Klein. He was talking about a discussion you had, and he said, when he, Webb, talks about the war in Iraq, "Jim Webb, the Democrat running for the Senate, U.S. Senate from Virginia, likes to paraphrase Dwight Eisenhower on the war in Korea: Anyone who tells you we can set a timetable for withdrawal doesn't understand war."

STEPHANOPOULOS : If a timetable was wrong then, why is it right now?

WEBB: Well, I don't think we should have a specific timetable for getting out. I've always said that.

STEPHANOPOULOS : So you're against this legislation by Senator Reid?

WEBB: First of all, let's say — let me clarify two things. The overt pressure on the Maliki government to solve the problem from within has not come from most of the Democrats. You're hearing it, for instance, either from Senator McConnell yesterday. This is sort of an odd situation that shows the unreality of a lot of this debate.

Now the Republicans are saying, this is Iraq's last chance. This is their last chance. Maliki has to get it right, when, you know, I mean, we...

STEPHANOPOULOS : Yeah, but is it true, though?

WEBB: No. Let me be clear here. There's only so much that a weak central government surrounded by armed factions can do. We saw that in Lebanon. I was there as a journalist with the — you had the almost identical situation in microcosm.

But the rhetoric from the Republicans and other people who are saying that is almost counterintuitive. They're saying, this is your last chance, when you're a weak government and you're not able to basically control the factions that you're responsible for, but what happens...

STEPHANOPOULOS : But let me go back to this issue of the timetable. I understand (inaudible) timetable...

WEBB: I want to get to that, but I think this is a very important point here, where they're saying, this is your last chance, but what does that mean if the Maliki government cannot do it? Are they going to favor a total withdrawal? We don't know. I mean, I think that's an unrealistic thing to say.

Now, with respect to timetables, I've said over and over again, the first thing — I mean, for three years, before I ever thought I'd run for office — that the first thing that must happen is a diplomatic umbrella, the sort of thing that we saw yesterday. And by the way, I congratulated Secretary Rice on the Senate floor last Monday about this. And from there, you can start withdrawing.

What I've said is, you can’t simply start withdrawing and then expect a diplomatic settlement to fall into place. That's a sign of weakness.

STEPHANOPOULOS : But this is still a timetable for withdrawal.

WEBB: And we now have — no, we now have, first of all, the beginnings of a true diplomatic process in place. This legislation, the last time I read it, which was on Friday, basically says we will begin withdrawing combat troops from the streets of Iraq within four months — or 120 days after the signing of this legislation.

STEPHANOPOULOS : With the goal of redeploying...

WEBB: With the goal.

STEPHANOPOULOS : ... by March 31, 2008, all United States combat forces from Iraq...

WEBB: Other than...

STEPHANOPOULOS : ... except for a limited number...

WEBB: Yeah.

STEPHANOPOULOS : ... for protecting U.S. personnel training and equipping Iraqi forces or conducting counterterrorism. But that is still a timetable for withdrawal.

WEBB: Well, that's a — no, it's a timetable to begin and to get our troops off the streets of Iraq, which, by the way, even the United States military, active-duty military, I think agrees with. Only 35 percent of the active-duty military agrees with the Bush plan, according to the service Times poll.

So, it's a way to push this administration, as we've been doing in these hearings, to couple military withdrawal with a diplomatic effort. And that's the way this should have gone. What I'm opposed to, and I'm still opposed to, is the notion that we should be withdrawing militarily in the absence of rigorous diplomacy.

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