U.S. Representative David Obey (D-Wausau) put it bluntly Friday when he told President Bush that Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz should step down because of their massive mishandling of the war in Iraq.

“I think the time has arrived to recognize that we have suffered serious setbacks in efforts to make the American people safe,” Obey wrote in a three-page letter to the president. “I recommend that you allow the secretary and deputy secretary of defense to return to the private sector.”

Obey wrote the letter asking the Bush administration to make some improvements in policy concerning post-war Iraq, Press Secretary Tom Powell-Bullock said.

“He has an obligation to speak out,” Powell-Bullock said.

Obey decided to send his letter to Bush after consulting with defense and diplomatic experts and with constituents in his northern district of Wisconsin during the House’s August recess, Powell-Bullock added. The congressman said he saw huge polarization and division, according to the press secretary.

“[The constituents’] comments aren’t jiving with what’s being said in Washington,” Powell-Bullock said.

As the ranking minority member on the House Appropriations Committee, Obey said he is concerned with how Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz have handled the reconstruction in Iraq, especially in terms of military spending.

Obey and members of the committee are asking for budget justification, particularly Bush’s $87 million request for increases in spending on the war on terror. And according to Powell-Bullock, the defense leaders say they have no obligation to report where their spending goes.

“You don’t just set levels and send tax payers’ money out the door without questions of where it’s going,” Powell-Bullock said. “You ask tough questions.”

However, Obey did give Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz some credit for their efforts.

“I am certain that they have worked hard and have made financial and personal sacrifices for what they perceived to be the national interest,” Obey wrote. “But they have made repeated and serious miscalculations that have been extremely costly to the American people.”

University of Wisconsin professor of political science Ken Mayer said Obey’s letter shows Democrats’ disapproval of the administration’s policy, but said the letter would probably be ignored.

“This is an indication that Obey and Democrats are not happy with Rumsfeld and how the situation in Iraq is going,” Mayer said. “It’s not going to have an effect. I can’t imagine that anyone in the White House would take this [seriously].”

Mayer added that the congressman is simply trying to make a statement and that his letter does not signify the possibility for a change in policy.

Powell-Bullock agrees.

“Obey recognizes that the president does run the show,” he said. “And it is his prerogative to do so.”

In some ways, Bush’s speech Sunday reflected some of the same concerns Obey addressed in his letter. The speech was Bush’s attempt to pre-empt any trepidations people have or might have with post-war activities in Iraq, especially in the longer time span, Mayer said.

“[Bush’s statement] reflects recognition that there’s something rumbling out there.”