As Easter Sunday saw the 4000th soldier fall in the ongoing occupation of Iraq Bush will not reduce troop levels. Despite testimony before Congress from General Petraeus last summer to the contrary Bush will hand off the war to the next president…
…it now appears likely that any decision on major reductions in American troops from Iraq will be left to the next president. That ensures that the question over what comes next will remain in the center of the presidential campaign through Election Day.
General Petraeus, speaking to Mr. Bush by secure videoconference during a two-hour meeting of the National Security Council, recommended putting off decisions on further troop reductions for a month or two after the departure in July of five extra brigades sent last year to help secure the nation, the officials said. They spoke on the condition of anonymity in order to speak freely about internal deliberations.
