The Candidates and Petraeus

In the long parade of US senators questioning General David Petraeus on Capitol Hill yesterday, there were three who were not like the others.

Hillary Clinton, John McCain and Barack Obama are running for president. One of them will almost certainly sit in the Oval Office next January as commander in chief. Patraeus's commander. That gives their questions, their views, a different weight. Because Iraq will be waiting.

This hour, On Point: we listen closely as the three who would be president pose their questions on Iraq.Guests:

David Ignatius, columnist and associate editor at The Washington Post.

Bernard Trainor, a retired U.S. Marine lieutenant general, he led combat commands in the Korean and Vietnam wars, was the military correspondent for The New York Times from 1986 to 1990, and is the co-author of "Cobra II: The Inside Story of the Invasion and Occupation of Iraq."

Jack Beatty, On Point news analyst and senior editor at The Atlantic Monthly.