Monday, September 10, 2007
Re: Ackerman and Andy and Drawdown [Kate O'Beirne]
My impression is that the projected drawdown is not in reaction to Capitol Hill politics but instead reflects the need to balance competing military priorities, i.e. more to do with the Pentagon than with the Congress. A senior Administration official reminded a few of us today that different military leaders have different responsibilities that the President must balance. The Joint Chiefs have to recruit and train our forces. They don't fight our wars. The theater commander has responsibilities beyond Iraq. General Petraeus's mission is to win in Iraq. All have their own priorities with respect to troop deployments. The drawdowns anticipated by Gen. Petraeus are supported by all three. We were told: "The President is at the tiller and everybody's in the boat."
09/10 05:06 PM
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