Senator Hagel: Bush Should Talk to Iran

Here is a respected Republican who thinks Bush is wrong on Iran. Why not talk to that country the same way you do with North Korea? Unfortunately, Bush isn't interested in peace. He wants more war:

Sen. Chuck Hagel, a Nebraska Republican, lambasted President Bush's foreign policy on Iran and the Middle East in a speech sponsored by a Washington think-tank Thursday.

"I do not see how the collective actions that we are now taking will produce the results that we seek on Iran's nuclear program, in Iraq, on the Israel-Palestine issue, or on any issue," he said.

He added that he believes the United States should engage countries like Iran immediately, much like has been attempted with North Korea, because "each day becomes more and more dangerous."

[...]"Loose talk of World War III, intimidation, threats, bellicose speeches only heighten the dangers we face in the world. Without offering solutions and building international alliances we only strengthen the hand of those who prey upon and play to a confused, frightened and disorganized world."

No, Hagel is not running for President:

"I wrote President Bush expressing my concerns about the path that we are now on regarding Iran," he said. "I told him that unless there is a strategic shift in our policies, I believe the United States will find itself in a dangerous and increasingly isolated position in the coming months."

[...]He also told the audience that he is concerned with how the international community views the country.

[...]"You know the poll numbers — whether it's Gallup, or Pew or whatever — you know our standing in the world. Why is that happening to a great nation like America, a great people like the American people are?"

Meanwhile, Bush tries to get approval for his attack on Iran:

President George W. Bush will welcome German Chancellor Angela Merkel to his Texas ranch on Friday where they will seek to show unity on Iran even as Tehran defies the West over its nuclear program.

Merkel will be the second European ally this week to be treated as a special guest by Bush, coming on the heels of French President Nicolas Sarkozy who on Wednesday was given a tour of Mount Vernon, the Virginia home of George Washington, the first U.S. president.

With just over a year left in office, Bush is determined to keep up the pressure on Iran over its nuclear program.

Bush's new lapdog has already signed-on:

President Bush and French President Nicolas Sarkozy stood shoulder-to-shoulder against a nuclear-armed Iran on Wednesday, demonstrating the cozier relationship between the two countries under France's new conservative leader.

Bush said agreement on Iran was a hallmark of their talks here at the Virginia home of George Washington. He said they expressed "the desire to work jointly to convince the Iranian regime to give up their nuclear weapons ambitions for the sake of peace."

"It is unacceptable for Iran at any point to have a nuclear weapon," said Sarkozy. He said, "I believe even in the need to toughen" United Nations sanctions now leveled against Tehran for continuing to enrich uranium.