Retired general Wesley Clark is making his first appearance in Iowa this afternoon after he formally declared Wednesday that he’s running for President. Clark has caused a furor among reporters by declaring that would have voted for the congressional resolution that gave President Bush authorization to wage war in Iraq. It’s a stumble of sorts for the retired general, who’s been making hay on the speaker’s circuit by criticizing the Iraq war. This morning in Iowa City, Clark told a group of about 40 Iowans that if he’d been president instead of Bush, the US would not have gone into Iraq the way it did. Clark says the US won’t make the situation any better by prematurely pulling forces out and letting Iraq descend into chaos. The retired NATO commander says it’s crucial to get more countries involved in an international force in Iraq as soon as possible.Clark is to deliver a foreign policy speech at the University of Iowa, starting at four o’clock. Iowa Democratic Party chairman Gordon Fischer says Clark has a lot of work to do. Fischer has talked with Clark once, at a party event a few months ago. Fischer says he seemed to be a very nice man, and had the kind of “commanding presence” you’d expect from a general. Clark is a Rhodes Scholar who graduated at the top of his West Point class. His last military assignment was as commander of NATO. Clark’s recently been employed as a TV military analyst.Jeff Link ran Al Gore’s Iowa campaign in 2000, and he says starting a campaign this late in the campaign poses several challenges. For example, most of the talented political organizers in Iowa have been snapped up by the other established campaigns. And many Iowa Democrats have already lined up behind another candidate. Link says while polls suggest some may support Clark, it’ll be difficult to find those people and mobilize them. Link says Clark is going to have to fill in the blanks soon and articulate a domestic agenda to match his foreign policy expertise.Fischer says Clark can probably put together a staff here. Fischer says Clark can’t rely solely upon veterans to do well here