A September 5 New York Times article on the congressional debate over U.S. Iraq war policy uncritically quoted Sen. Norm Coleman (R-MN) criticizing the Government Accountability Office's (GAO) newly released progress report on Iraq war benchmarks for not including data regarding sectarian violence in Iraq from August. The Times quoted Coleman telling Comptroller General David M. Walker, who heads the GAO, during a September 4 Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on the report that "[t]he data in August, I think, would be very clear about the reduction in violence." However, the Times did not provide Walker's response to Coleman that the GAO “asked [the military] for, but did not receive, the information through the end of August” and that even though military officials “were unable to give us the data through August ... we obtained their views for where the situation was through as of August 30th.”

Under questioning from Coleman about sectarian violence data, Walker also asserted that “there are several different sources within the administration on violence, and those sources do not agree” and that “part of the problem that we had in reaching a conclusion about sectarian violence is there are multiple sources showing different levels of violence with different trends.”

From the Times article headlined “Democrats Aim to Reframe Iraq Debate”:

The final version, released Tuesday, found that 3 of 18 benchmarks had been met and 4 others had been partly met. It was written by David M. Walker, comptroller general of the United States, who testified at the hearing.

“It is hard to draw any assessment except that there is a failing grade for a policy that is still not working,” said Senator John Kerry, Democrat of Massachusetts, who ran the hearing in the absence of the committee chairman, Senator Joseph R. Biden Jr. of Delaware, who is running for president and will go to Iraq this week.

Senator Norm Coleman, Republican of Minnesota, suggested that the report did not include data from August and that more recent numbers presented a more positive picture. “The data in August, I think, would be very clear about the reduction in violence,” Mr. Coleman told Mr. Walker.

But some Republican committee members, including the ranking member, Richard G. Lugar of Indiana, said they accepted the report as an independent accounting of the Iraqi government's performance to date.

From the September 4 Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing:

SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA): Senator Coleman?

COLEMAN: Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I'd just like to follow up on the last issue, on sectarian violence, because you've indicated in this report that you do have data to the end of August. Is that correct?

WALKER: That's correct.

COLEMAN: And in terms of the issue of sectarian violence, and I just got back from Baghdad yesterday. I was with General Petraeus Sunday night -- Saturday night. And his data goes through August. And I think the general would say that the surge was a full force in mid-June. Is that correct?

WALKER: That's what he's said publicly.

COLEMAN: And that the data from -- in your data, at least in the initial report, he thought -- it was through July. In fact, he's talked about that. You've compared violence in July and going back to what other period -- that's the period that you use.

WALKER: Let me clarify, if I can, Senator. The charts and graphs that we used only go through July. We have received information from the Pentagon and talked to people as recently as August 30th. We had asked them for the data for August. They were unable to give us the data through August, but we obtained their views for where the situation was through as of August 30th.

COLEMAN: Because I recall the language in this, the comparison of data in July versus some other period. But my point being, and I've seen the data in August. And the data in August would, I think, be very clear about a reduction in violence. General Petraeus has those charts that they show the hot spots in red -- in Baghdad area we're talking about now. We'll talk about Anbar separately -- but that by the end of August, at least the data would be very clear showing a reduction in violence. You don't have any -- do you have evidence that counters that?

WALKER: Senator Coleman, first, we have an unclassified version which we're talking about today. And we have a classified version. Without getting into detail, let's just say that there are several different sources within the administration on violence, and those sources do not agree. So I don't know what General Petraeus is giving you. I don't know which source he's using. But part of the problem that we had in reaching a conclusion about sectarian violence is there are multiple sources showing different levels of violence with different trends.

COLEMAN: But what you're saying is that you haven't, then, seen the data you said you haven't seen the data for August.

WALKER: Right. We asked for, but did not receive, the information through the end of August. But there were discussions that were held that talked in general terms about August, but they haven't given us the data. You're correct, Senator.

In contrast to the Times, a September 5 Washington Post article noted that “senior military officials” complained that the GAO report “did not consider statistics for August” but later reported that Walker had “asked for, but did not receive, the information through the end of August”:

The GAO concluded that all forms of violence remain high in Iraq -- causing senior military officials to complain that the report did not consider statistics for August, when, they said, trends in sectarian violence and the performance of the Iraqi security forces improved.

“They use the end of July as the data and evidentiary cutoff and therefore are not taking into account any gains in any of the benchmarks that may have become more clear throughout August,” one official said.

[...]

But Walker said the GAO received different assessments of the levels of violence. The report, he noted, recommended that the administration reflect such divergence in its own reports. It was unclear whether sectarian attacks had dropped, he said, “since it is difficult to measure intentions and there are various measures of sectarian violence from different sources. ... Some show increases, some show decreases, and some show inconsistent patterns.”

Walker said the GAO consulted with the military until Thursday. “We asked for, but did not receive, the information through the end of August,” he said. “But we obtained their views for where the situation was ... as of August 30th.”