President Bush declared Tuesday that 'it would be a terrible mistake' to pull U.S. forces out of Iraq, while White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan said the White House will be releasing an unclassified “National Strategy for Victory in Iraq Wednesday (via ThinkProgress).
"We will make decisions about troops levels based upon the capability of the Iraqis to take the fight to the enemy," Bush said in El Paso, Texas. "I will make decisions on the level of troops based upon the recommendations of commanders on the ground."
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Bush spoke hours before Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld was expected to argue against an early exit from Iraq. In remarks prepared for delivery at a 1:15 p.m. ET Pentagon news conference, Rumsfeld will say that quitting the war would allow insurgents to prevail and put the United States "at still greater risk."
"Quitting is not an exit strategy," Rumsfeld will say, according to remarks prepared for delivery.
His comments, released in advance of the news conference, were designed to set the stage for Bush's on Wednesday at the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis, Md. Rumsfeld will preview the more detailed strategy the president will outline "to help the Iraqi people take increasing control of their own country."
Bush's speech Wednesday is seen as a milestone in the political battle over Iraq.
Senator Russ Feingold (D-WI) issued this statement to RAW STORY in response to President Bush's announcement that he will deliver a plan for victory address to the U.S. Naval Academy Wednesday.
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“A majority of the American people, an increasing number of elected officials, and according to a recent article in the “New Yorker,” more and more military and intelligence officials, believe that the President’s “stay the course” policy in Iraq isn’t working.
“In his speech tomorrow at the U.S. Naval Academy, the President has another opportunity to lay out a specific, coherent policy on Iraq that includes a flexible timetable, tied to clear benchmarks, for completing our military mission and withdrawing our troops. By doing so, the President can make sure that our Iraq policy helps, rather than hurts, our broader national security strategy for defeating the global terrorist networks that threaten the U.S.
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“Our brave service members and their families deserve answers about how long they can expect to be in Iraq. The American people deserve a clear plan for concluding our military mission. And the Iraqi people need to know without any doubt that we do not intend to stay in that country indefinitely.
“The President should have proposed such a plan, and a timetable, months ago. Last week, I called on President Bush to lay out his plan for the American people in his State of the Union speech in January, if not before. His speech tomorrow is a good opportunity to put forward a plan that makes America stronger and protects our nation’s security.”
