White House: Iraq vote would defy insurgency

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Whether Iraqis vote for or against
the new constitution, the act of casting a ballot will push
democracy forward and defy the insurgency, the White House said
on Friday.

“The Iraqi people time and time again defied the
terrorists,” White House spokesman Scott McClellan said.

The White House sees the referendum on a new constitution
as an historic milestone and evidence that political progress
is being made since the U.S.-led invasion in March 2003.

But the American public has become increasingly wary of
U.S. involvement in Iraq, where 1,960 U.S. troops have died and
another 15,063 have been wounded.

Polls this week showed fewer than 30 percent of Americans
believed the country was on the right track amid violence in
Iraq, high gas prices and growing budget deficits.

Insurgents mounted attacks leading up to the vote,
including on one of Iraq’s main Sunni Arab political parties
after it called for a “Yes” vote in Saturday’s referendum.

Most Sunni political groups oppose the constitution and
called on Iraqis to either boycott or vote “No,” arguing that
the charter could divide Iraq and hand too much power to
Shi’ites and Kurds.

“This is a historic moment in the history of Iraq. It is a
hopeful moment for the entire region,” McClellan said.

He said there were more than 6,000 polling places open and
more than 15 million Iraqis registered to vote.

“Democracy is taking root and there is nothing the
terrorists can do to stop the right and desire of the Iraqi
people to live in freedom,” he said.