Set aside for a second that Jon Powers is running for Congress. Instead, take a look at the story he told today of the Bush administration mismanagement of the Iraq war.

Powers, a veteran of the war, explained how, when his platoon went into one community, the streets were filled with garbage. He asked his higher-ups for money - $40 a week - so some of the citizens could restart their garbage and sewage trucks and haul away the waste. The request lingered and was eventually denied because US officials wanted to bring in a private contractor, which was more expensive.

Retired Army Major General Paul Eaton had another example: when Paul Bremer, the former US-appointed governor of Iraq, closed down state industries, putting droves of Iraqis out of work.

Powers, fellow Congressional candidate Eric Massa, and Retired Army Major Generals Eaton and John Batiste gathered to talk about the Iraq war today at the Rochester Police Locust Club's headquarters on Lexington Avenue. Eaton and Batiste are heavyweights among Iraq war critics, given their experience as commanding officers during the war. Eaton served as an advisor for Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign and is one of the authors of a plan drafted for Democratic Congressional candidates to end the war.

"We need involvement in Iraq from every cabinet level position," said Massa, who signed on to the plan.

That means administration agriculture officials and commerce officials should be just as involved as the Department of Defense, he said.