Iraq troop reduction plan not enough, Reid says

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No details on amendments
Reid declined to discuss details of the plan on Wednesday, saying only that Democrats would offer four to six amendments “to change the course of the war” when the Senate takes up a defense bill next week. Among those will likely be legislation by Sen. Jim Webb, R-Va., that would require troops spend as much time home as they do in combat.

Among the Republicans working with Reid and Levin on anti-war legislation include Sen. Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., and Gordon Smith, R-Neb., two GOP senators who long ago turned against the war.

In a 15-minute address from the White House at 9 p.m. ET on Thursday, Bush will endorse Petraeus’ recommendations, said administration officials. The White House also plans to issue a written status report on the troop buildup on Friday, they said. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because Bush’s speech is not yet final.

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While mirroring Petraeus’ strategy, Bush will place more conditions on reductions than his general did, insisting that conditions on the ground must warrant cuts and that now-unforeseen events could change the plan.

Earlier on Wednesday, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said that stabilizing Iraq meant more than improving security within its borders and included “the territorial security of Iraq” with respect to its Mideast neighbors, especially Iran.

“Iran is a very troublesome neighbor,” she said on NBC’s “Today” show. “Iran is prepared to fill the vacuum” if the United States leaves Iraq.

In a joint press conference with Crocker on Wednesday, Petraeus said Iranians appear to be trying to create a like Hezbollah-like organization in Iraq that they could use to gain influence inside the fractured country.

On Friday, the president will travel to a Marine base in Quantico, Va., just outside Washington, to talk further about his Iraq policy, the White House announced. Vice President Dick Cheney will do his part, too, speaking on Iraq on Friday at appearances at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum in Grand Rapids, Mich., and at MacDill Air Force Base in Florida.