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Getbig Main Boards => Politics and Political Issues Board => Topic started by: Dos Equis on July 20, 2008, 11:55:35 AM
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Are you listening Obama?
Troop Withdrawal Timeline Concerns Pentagon Chief
Sunday, July 20, 2008 11:26 AM
WASHINGTON - A fixed timetable for withdrawing U.S. combat troops from Iraq could jeopardize political and economic progress, the Pentagon's top military officer said Sunday.
Adm. Mike Mullen said the agreement between President Bush and Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to set a "general time horizon" for bringing more troops home from the war was a sign of "healthy negotiations for a burgeoning democracy."
"I think the strategic goals of having time horizons are ones that we all seek because eventually we would like to see U.S. forces draw down and eventually all come home," the Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman said. "This right now doesn't speak to either time lines or timetables, based on my understanding of where we are."
The best way to determine troops levels, the Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman said, is to assess the conditions on the ground and to consult with American commanders — the mission that Bush has given him.
"Should that mission change, and we get a new president, and should those conditions be conditions that get generated or required in order to advise a future president, I would do so accordingly," Mullen said. "Based on my time in and out of Iraq in recent months, I think the conditions-based assessments are the way to go and they're very solid. We're making progress and we can move forward accordingly based on those conditions."
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http://www.newsmax.com/headlines/mullen_iraq_withdrawal/2008/07/20/114499.html
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I think the main appeal of this was Bush's nod yes to a "horizon" giving John McCain some leverage with the "Iraq War" when in debates with Obama.
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"Time horizon" is a lot like time table.
IMO it's the white house's way of agreeing with al-maliki's demand for a timetable.
Remember, Bush appeased NKorea with oil and appeased iran by starting negotiations this week by sending his #3 man from the state department into discussions. He'll likely cave again to maliki and call it something else.