Bush to next president: Iraq’s all yours

President Bush cleared up a minor mystery tonight about his plans for future U.S. troop withdrawals: American troops are shifting from leading operations, to partnering with Iraqi forces, and, eventually, to a protective overwatch mission. As part of this transition, one Army brigade combat team and one Marine Expeditionary Unit have already come home and ...

President Bush cleared up a minor mystery tonight about his plans for future U.S. troop withdrawals:

President Bush cleared up a minor mystery tonight about his plans for future U.S. troop withdrawals:

American troops are shifting from leading operations, to partnering with Iraqi forces, and, eventually, to a protective overwatch mission. As part of this transition, one Army brigade combat team and one Marine Expeditionary Unit have already come home and will not be replaced. In the coming months, four additional brigades and two Marine battalions will follow suit. Taken together, this means more than 20,000 of our troops are coming home.

Any further drawdown of U.S. troops will be based on conditions in Iraq and the recommendations of our commanders.

It's possible, then, that there will be more than 130,000 U.S. troops in Iraq when the next U.S. president takes office on January 21, 2009. What is he or she going to do about it?

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