Troop Cuts

Tomorrow night in an address to the nation, President Bush will announce a reduction in American troops in Iraq.

He hasn't said a word yet and already the Democrats are whining.

WASHINGTON -- President Bush will tell the nation Thursday evening that he plans to reduce the American troop presence in Iraq by as many as 30,000 by next summer but will condition those and further cuts on continued progress, The Associated Press has learned.

In a 15-minute address from the White House at 9 p.m. EDT, Bush will endorse the recommendations of his top general and top diplomat in Iraq, following their appearance at two days of hearings in Congress, administration officials said. The White House plans to issue a written status report on the troop buildup on Friday, they said.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because Bush's speech is not yet final.

...In the speech, the president will say he understands Americans' deep concerns about U.S. involvement in Iraq and their desire to bring the troops home, they said. Bush will say that, after hearing from Petraeus and Crocker, he has decided on a way forward that will reduce the U.S. military presence but not abandon Iraq to chaos, according to the officials.

The address will stake out a conciliatory tone toward Congress. But while mirroring Petraeus' strategy, Bush will place more conditions on reductions than his general did, insisting that conditions on the ground must warrant cuts and that now-unforeseen events could change the plan.

That makes sense to me.

However, the idea of striking a conciliatory tone toward Congress is nice but pointless.

Poison rules.

There is no chance at achieving even a modicum of goodwill. Zero.

...House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said Bush appears poised merely to bring the country back to where it was before the election that put Democrats in control of Congress — with 130,000 troops in Iraq.

"Please. It's an insult to the intelligence of the American people that that is a new direction in Iraq," she said. "We're as disappointed as the public is that the president has a tin ear to their opinion on this war."

Please.

I bet if President Bush announced that he would begin withdrawing troops immediately and lay out a timetable for them all to be home by the end of the year, the Democrats would call it a horrible mistake.

If they got what they wished for and more, the Democrats would still spin it as a disastrous policy.

Anything to discredit Bush.

It's that ugly.

They're that power hungry and selfish.