When Senator Barack Obama travels to Iraq later this summer to get a first-hand look at conditions there, he said he would be accompanied by two colleagues who have “bipartisan wisdom when it comes to foreign policy.”

Senator Chuck Hagel, Republican of Nebraska, and Senator Jack Reed, Democrat of Rhode Island, will join Mr. Obama on his first trip to Iraq as a presidential candidate. All three senators share similar views – critical ones – of the administration’s Iraq policy.

The visit to Iraq, and his findings from briefings with military commanders, represents an important moment in Mr. Obama’s general-election candidacy. While he has said that he still supports the idea of removing American combat troops within 16 months, at a pace of one to two brigades a month, the conditions in the country also hold significant sway over his plan.

He said he was going to Iraq not to promote withdrawal but to gather facts.

For Obama this is a good idea after being poked and prodded by McCain and his pack mouthpieces.