Democrats Move on to Benchmarks

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• Mullen Warns Iraq Exit Will Take More Than 2 Years

  Nov 18, 08 1:44 AM CST
  The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is "comfortable" with the new US-Iraq security pact scheduling the start of an American troop pullout next year, but believes some major hurdles still exist, the Washington Post reports. Admiral Michael Mullen cautioned that the US has huge amounts of equipment and thousands of troops within the country, and it will likely take up to three years to get everything out of the nation safely.
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• Maturing Iraqi Army Enabled US Troop Deal

  Aug 22, 08 10:40 AM CDT
  The US's preliminary agreement with Iraq to withdraw most combat troops by 2011 would have been unthinkable even a few months ago. Declining levels of violence, a ceasefire with the Mahdi Army, and the about-face of Sunni leaders have all helped, the Wall Street Journal reports, but for the administration, one factor trumps all others: the strengthening of the Iraqi army from ragtag force to legitimate operation.
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• Kissinger Outlines Endgame for Iraq—Without Deadlines

  Jul 31, 08 3:18 PM CDT
  Henry Kissinger outlines his vision for the endgame in Iraq in a piece in the Washington Post, arguing that recent progress makes redeployment of US troops feasible, but "establishing a deadline is the surest way to undermine the hopeful prospects." A fixed deadline would encourage both al-Qaeda and Iran to plan a resurgence, writes the former secretary of state, and it would undermine the necessary diplomacy, which he sees including a regional peace conference.
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• Maliki Pegs Obama as the Most Pliant: Krauthammer

  Jul 25, 08 8:48 AM CDT
  Nouri al-Maliki's endorsement of Barack Obama's timetable for withdrawal from Iraq this week was "the earliest and most ostentatious absentee ballot of this presidential election," writes Charles Krauthammer. The Washington Post columnist thinks that the Iraqi PM gave Obama an electorial assist for a clear reason: between him and John McCain, "it is no mystery who would be the more pliant US negotiator."
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• Maliki Backs Obama Iraq Plan

  Jul 19, 08 3:36 PM CDT
  While shying away from a presidential endorsement, Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki expressed support for Barack Obama’s 16-month timeline for withdrawal of American troops from Iraq, Der Spiegel reports. He expressed frustration at his country’s lack of control over US forces and said they should leave "as soon as possible, as far as we are concerned." More »