Why Congress Has to Ask Questions

WASHINGTON — Do members of Congress have any business questioning a president's military strategy in the midst of war? That was the question swirling around Capitol Hill last week. In the heat of debate, some went so far as to insinuate that any questioning of a wartime president is divisive and unpatriotic.

What dangerous nonsense this is. Congress not only has the right to question a president's policies, but also the duty. In a war, the American people have every right to a full accounting of what their sons and daughters are fighting for and what their government expects to achieve. To question is not to accuse or to condemn. To question is to seek the truth. The less forthcoming a president is, the more Congress will have to probe for answers. Such is the current situation.

In the wake of Sept. 11, President Bush declared all-out war on terrorism. Money is no object; time is no deterrent. We will win this war, the president vowed. We will hunt down and destroy the terrorists.

Those words constitute a sweeping manifesto. I support the president's commitment, but as a senator, I have a responsibility to look beyond the rhetoric. How will we win this war? What are the costs? What are our objectives? What are the standards by which we measure victory? How long will we be in Afghanistan? Where else will we go?