WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House on Monday brushed aside charges by retired Marine Gen. Anthony Zinni, former chief of U.S. Central Command, that U.S. policies in Iraq have been a failure.Zinni told CBS' "60 Minutes" it was time to change course in Iraq. "The course is headed over Niagara Falls. I think it's time to change course a little bit or at least hold somebody responsible for putting you on this course. Because it's been a failure," he said on Sunday.
The White House dismissed the criticism, saying President Bush does not look for advice from Zinni, who served as commander-in-chief of U.S. Central Command from 1997 to 2000.
"I recognize he's a retired general who certainly stated his position," White House spokesman Scott McClellan told reporters. "But the president looks to those active commanders who are working to implement our policies and build a safer world to make America more secure."
Before his retirement, Zinni drew up invasion plans that called for deploying 300,000 troops, more than double the roughly 140,000 now in Iraq.
Zinni's scathing critique of the Pentagon and its handling of the war in Iraq are included in a new book about his career, co-written by Tom Clancy, called "Battle Ready."
