Bush Embraces Pause in Troop Cutbacks

[uppityperson]

Source: AP

President Bush has ordered a halt in U.S. troop withdrawals from Iraq after July, embracing the recommendation of his top commander in the war. Bush says that General David Petraeus will "have all the time he needs."

Bush announced his decision at the White House before veterans groups and an audience that included Vice President Dick Cheney, Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

Bush said U.S. force have made major gains since he ordered a buildup of about 30,000 U.S. forces. He said that "we have renewed and revived the prospect of success" in Iraq.

(clip)

(Pelosi) added that Bush needs to tell the American people how keeping 140,000 troops in Iraq will help reduce the threat the nation faces because the U.S. military is bogged down in Iraq, what conditions will be needed for further troop withdrawals beyond July and how much longer the threat from extremists hiding along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border will be allowed to "grow because our resource commitment in Iraq makes is impossible to respond adequately."

Read more: http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5h5g6j9jCMUKAPB08_aMvC8XnQqIQD8VV39585

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I'm not sure if "more of the same" is LBN, but couldn't find this on a search so here you are.

[maddezmom]

1. text of speech: Yet, with the surge, a major strategic shift has occurred. Fifteen months ago, ...

~snip~

Yet, with the surge, a major strategic shift has occurred. Fifteen months ago, America and the Iraqi government were on the defensive. Today, we have the initiative.

Fifteen months ago, extremists were sowing sectarian violence. Today, many mainstream Sunni and Shia are actively confronting the extremists.

Fifteen months ago, al-Qaida had bases in Iraq that it was using to kill our troops and terrorize the Iraqi people. Today, we have put al-Qaida on the defensive in Iraq and we're now working to deliver a crippling blow.

Fifteen months ago, Americans were worried about the prospect of failure in Iraq. Today, thanks to the surge, we've renewed and revived the prospect of success.

With this goal in mind, Gen. Petraeus and Ambassador Crocker have submitted recommendations on the way forward. After detailed discussions with my national security team, including the secretary of defense, secretary of state, Joint Chiefs of Staff, I've accepted these recommendations.

A recommendation likely to receive the most attention is on troop levels.



http://www.ledger-enquirer.com/254/story/293626.html

[endarkenment]

2. Translation: Bush Screws Troops Again. nt.

[Bruce McAuley]

3. I was watching him live without the sound or text...

I told the wife he was "doing a Nixon", saying he couldn't pull the troops home now.
Yup, it was a Nixon redux all right while Daddy Warbucks makes lots more money and gas goes to $4 a gallon.
He's a psychopath, misery does excite him obviously.

Bruce

[Thepricebreaker]

4. This shows he is not affraid of democrats or the american people. Evil lame duck?

[laststeamtrain]

5. Bush says U.S. strategy in Iraq needs more time

Source: McClatchy Newspapers

Bush says U.S. strategy in Iraq needs more time
David Lightman | McClatchy Newspapers
last updated: April 10, 2008 02:07:34 PM

WASHINGTON — President Bush said Thursday that Gen. David Petraeus, the top U.S. commander in Iraq, will "have all the time he needs" to decide how and when to reduce American forces after the additional troops that were sent to Iraq last year are withdrawn by the end of July.

A resolute, sometimes defiant Bush gave a status report on Iraq to members of veterans organizations at the White House, saying that the American troop "surge" has been a success.

"Fifteen months ago, America and the Iraqi government were on the defensive," the president said. "Today, we have the initiative."

His message alternated between an insistence that although the mission in Iraq is going well, the country needs a strong American presence and a promise to cut troops and provide more time for them at home.

Read more: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/227/story/33299.html

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The Way Forward In Iraq
President Bush Accepts Recommendations To Assess Decreased Troop Presence On The Ground Before Making Additional Reductions To U.S. Forces

Today, President Bush announced that – after detailed discussions with the Secretaries of State and Defense and Joint Chiefs of Staff – he is accepting General David Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker's recommendations on the way ahead in Iraq...http://media.mcclatchydc.com/smedia/2008/04/10/14/Lightman-WH-facts.source.prod_affiliate.91.doc

[sinkingfeeling]

6. Time? Five plus years, 61 months, 1848 days, 44352 hours, and he wants more time?

[gratuitous]

7. There's a strategy?

News to me, and probably about 80% of the American people. But the faithful stenographers of the media just write it down, oblivious.

[fascisthunter]

8. no it doesn't. Bush is a Liar

[damntexdem]

11. After all, we just turned a corner.

It's a quite-familiar corner -- we've been past it frequently, at least every six months, as we've gone around in circles in Iraq. And Dubya wants to spin us even faster. Whoopee, here comes that corner again -- I hope we can make the turn at this speed!

;-)

[bobthedrummer]

9. "'Power of the purse' best hope Dems have to change direction in Iraq" by Jason Leopold

(4-10-2008 Online Journal)
http://www.onlinejournal.com/artman/publish/article_3160.shtml

[ryanmuegge]

10. He knows how bad things truly are over there.

He's just hoping that he can keep conditions in Iraq Iraq just "really fucking shitty," and not let it cross the point of no return before the next clown takes office. And by "point of no return" I mean the point where they can't even pretend the surge is working. It's getting close to that point.

[ShockediSay]

12. Bush Signals No Further Reduction of Troops in Iraq

Source: NYTimes

WASHINGTON — President Bush said Thursday that the senior United States commander in Iraq could “have all the time he needs” before reducing American forces there any further, but he promised shorter tours for troops and longer breaks for them at home.

Democrats responded by saying that no end was in sight to the American troop commitment.

Mr. Bush defended the costs of the war, in lives and money, declaring that his decision to order more troops to Iraq last year had averted potential defeat there and that withdrawing would be catastrophic to American interests. Speaking at the White House to a small audience that included Vice President Dick Cheney, the secretaries of State and Defense and representatives of veterans’ organizations, he signaled that an American force nearly as large as at any other point in the last five years would remain in Iraq through his presidency. He left any significant changes in policy to the next president.

“Fifteen months ago, Americans were worried about the prospect of failure in Iraq,” he said, sounding a triumphant note about his decision last year to send 30,000 additional troops. “Today, thanks to the surge, we’ve renewed and revived the prospect of success.”

Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/11/washington/11prexy.html

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Kicking the Can down the road

W/ no exit strategy still

sinking deeper into the neoCon quagmire

[The_Casual_Observer]

13. Who didn't see this coming? It's still up by +10k pre surge.

More bushco slight of hand. It never stops.

[aquart]

14. Oh. What a surprise.

[rAVES]

15. Shocking.. I'm shocked..

[DUlover2909]

16. I heard on NPR tonight he said leaving before victory would make the US look "weak".

I say, who gives a shit? Our troops should leave in the cover of darkness. We should leave covertly. We should leave ASAP and don't even tell anyone we're leaving. Leave it all behind and pretend we were never there. I wouldn't even care if the Iranians took over Iraq outright. Let them deal with it. Al Quaeda doesn't get along well with Iranians either. I have ideas for dealing with Iraq in a post-occupation world, but first things first: LEAVE NOW.

[Thor_MN]

17. I though in Neoconesque, this would be "Bush Increases Troop Numbers in Iraq"

I know they call it a Tax Increase when a scheduled sunset of Tax Reductions occurs. So when a scheduled Troop Reduction does not occur, it has to be a Troop Increase?

[eringer]

18. Maybe we should contract out the Iraqi Program to the Chinese

Lets see. The United States pulls out of Iraq. Turkey invades and annexes the north. Iran invades and annexes the south. But wait. Persians and Arabs have never gotten along. Iran is in big trouble if it invades. As a result, it will not invade. There will be deep ties between the two countries but that end state already exists. OK, now lets move to Turkey. Turkey is the conduit for all the oil flowing from northern Iraq. Why would it want to invade when it gets a big piece of the action. Turkey also gets money and weapons from the USA which is does not want to pi$$ off. So, Turkey will not invade. That leaves only three groups that can cause trouble in Iraq and two of those groups are "Iraqi people" groups -- Sunni Iraqis and Shiite Iraqis. The other is Al Qaeda -- a foreign-born group disliked by all Iraqis. So, who do we have left??? Yes, its only the Iraqi people. They will fight each other for a while longer, I am sure. Eventually, that will end as well. Maybe they will join forces and fight the Kurds in the north. More than likely, however, they will just get back their daily lives.
What does this tell us about this administration's team to win the war in Iraq? Only that its a self-serving group that feeds on fear and moves in the shadows. It begins the answers to questions under oath with the words, " I believe" which, of course, means nothing.