Thirteen minutes and 52 seconds. That was how much time passed before the start of the House Armed Services Committee meeting this morning and the moment Gen. David Petraeus’ testimony began. Rep. Ike Skelton, D-Mo., the committee chairman, and Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., the ranking minority member, took nearly 14 minutes to make their opening statements.
And still, the House has nothing on the Senate. In the Senate Armed Services Committee yesterday, Gen. Petraeus began speaking at 19 minutes, 57 seconds into the meeting. In the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee, it was 22 minutes, 47 seconds.