Senate Democratic Leaders Seek April 2008 Deadline for Iraq Redeployment

[babylonsister]

http://public.cq.com/docs/cqm/cqmidday110-000002547616.html

Senate Democratic Leaders Seek April 2008 Deadline for Iraq Redeployment

Brushing aside Republican pleas for more time to assess the effectiveness of the Bush administration’s “surge” in Iraq, Senate Democrats will try to force a reduction and redeployment of U.S. troops by April 30, 2008.

Senate Armed Services Chairman Carl Levin, D-Mich., will offer an amendment to the defense authorization bill (HR 1585) to mandate force reduction and redeployment in Iraq by April 30, 2008. The amendment, cosponsored by Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., is a step stronger than the chairman’s previous efforts to reduce the number of troops in Iraq.

“We have to move from an open-ended commitment to a much more limited commitment,” Reed said Tuesday at a news conference. “Come next spring, the ability to generate 160,000 soldiers and Marines in-country comes to an end.”

Before the Senate gets to the Levin-Reed proposal, it was expected to address an amendment by Jim Webb, D-Va., to mandate minimum intervals between deployments for active duty troops and for National Guard and Reserve forces.

Webb’s proposal would require active duty forces to be guaranteed as much time at home as they served while deployed, and reserve and Guard troops “dwell time” at home equal to three times their term of deployment.

[Totally Committed]

1. NOT SOON ENOUGH.

They should be taken out TODAY, or TOMORROW, at the latest.

TC