[jveritas]

Not at all. He did not set any table for withdrawal, all what he said that they hope that by the end of this year Iraqi troops are going to handle more territories than non Iraqi coalition troops. Stop your silly knee jerk reaction.

[manwiththehands]

"President Bush vowed for the first time yesterday to turn over most of Iraq to newly trained Iraqi troops by the end of this year...

I agree, only time will tell. However, "vowed" and "by the end of this year" is a timetable.

This is a WAR. Not a PR battle. Even if this were the plan "all along" why divulge it to the world and your enemies? It does NOT make sense!

I would not be surprised if the attacks started to wain. And I would not be surprised if they wain because the instigators see a misstep, a weakness in resolve. "By the end of the year" is less than a year away.

If I were an insurgent, terrorist or an instigator of an Iraqi civil war, I would tell my troops: "There it is, my brothers. A timetable. Back off. Let the Americans believe the Iraqi "troops" are in control. Be patient. It will only be a matter of time now when the Americans leave and we can continue."