But Sanchez, later questioned at length by an audience primarily composed of national and regional journalists, reserved his harshest words for American leaders who chose to invade Iraq. While sidestepping the issue of whether the invasion was a mistake, he told the crowd that "partisan struggles have led to political decisions that endangered the lives of our sons and daughters on the battlefield.

"The unmistakable message was that political power had greater priority than our national security objectives," Sanchez said. "Overcoming this strategic failure is the first step toward achieving victory in Iraq. Without bipartisan cooperation we are doomed to fail. There is nothing going on today in Washington that would give us hope."

Just the third Hispanic to rise to three-star general in the Army when he replaced Lt. Gen. William Wallace on June 15, 2003, Sanchez has talked of a "failure of leadership" in previous speeches and conversations with journalists. He has yet to address his role in the Abu Ghraib scandal or directly blame the administration for bad decisions and missed opportunities in the run-up to the war and the occupation.

Sanchez said he did not realize how bad things were in Iraq until the day he took command. He is the highest-ranking former military leader yet to suggest the Bush administration has fallen short in Iraq.

Retired Army Maj. Gen. John Batiste, who led the 1st Infantry Division in Iraq, appeared in a TV spot accusing the president of pursuing "a failed strategy that is breaking our great Army."

Despite his criticism, Sanchez said the United States has no choice but to remain in Iraq, even though it is likely that American troops will be in the country another decade at least. He said it is imperative that politicians form a consensus to develop a cohesive political, economic and military strategy for winning in Iraq. Leaders in Washington, including those in Congress, "have been derelict in their duty," Sanchez said, also telling the crowd, "We continue our inept coalition management efforts and, in fact, we are facing ever-decreasing troop commitments by our military coalition partners."

Terrorists and insurgents in the region "are arguably more dangerous than any threat we faced in the 20th century," he said, but also made it clear that there is yet another enemy every bit as fatal - those on both sides of the aisle in Washington.

"America must demand a unified national strategy that goes well beyond partisan politics and places the common good above all else," Sanchez said. "Too often our politicians have chosen loyalty to their political party above loyalty to the Constitution because of their lust for power."

Sig Christenson is a board member, co-founder and former president of Military Reporters & Editors. He can be reached at saddamscribe@yahoo.com.

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