Apr. 9, Interview - A controversial working agreement between President Bush and Nouri Al Maliki received some attention at the hearings. Iraq Ambassador Ryan Crocker says the agreement is necessary for troops to have authorization to continue work in Iraq. Dismissing signs of a permanent occupation, Crocker says:

"The agreement will not establish permanent bases in Iraq and we anticipate that it will expressly forswear them, the agreement will not specify troop levels and it will not tie the hands of the next administration."

But Catherine Lutz is a professor of Anthropology at the Brown University's Watson Institute says that when Crocker says there will be no permanent bases, it's not what it seems.

"That's just a linguistic trick, it means that they can say, 'its not permanent, it will only last for 99 years'. Or, its not permanent, we could leave at any time, or, its not permanent, its only long term, really long term." In other words, its just the language."

"Unfortunately, I think both Clinton and Obama have been using the same language, but its a language that doesn't prevent enduring bases."

"In other words, they've been saying no permanent bases in Iraq, but the Pentagon will return and say these are not permanent bases, these are enduring bases, or they're not even bases, they're cooperative security locations."