The United States expects to reduce its troop numbers in Iraq by more than 17,000 following the Dec. 15 national elections, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said Dec. 8. Rumsfeld, speaking on PBS' "News Hour With Jim Lehrer," said he expects to reduce the force, which surged to about 155,000 to ensure adequate security for the elections, to the previous baseline of 137,000 or 138,000. "I'm sure of that," he said, noting that violence is expected to drop following the upcoming election, as it did following the Oct. 15 referendum on the constitution and the Jan. 30 election earlier this year.
"If the past is a guide, we'll undoubtedly see that to be the case," the secretary said.