What Troop Reduction?

Updated below

In the following extract from the NY SUN note that the media is already parroting the lie that Patraeus and Bush are going to draw down troops by next year. This is a lie. The troops that made up the surge are and have always been due to rotate out next spring and we don't have the resources to replace them. The media is allowing the White House to scam the public with this lie...shameful.

Democratic leaders this month have hinted that they will not seek a withdrawal date as a condition of the temporary funding bills that expire this month. This may be in part because the White House already has agreed to withdraw some 30,000 soldiers by next summer, leaving 130,000, or the pre-surge troop levels, for the height of next year's political season. President Bush will address the nation tomorrow and is expected to endorse the withdrawal strategy previewed this week by General Petraeus on Capitol Hill.

Update: Even the Associated Press is help foster the lie.

WASHINGTON — President Bush will tell the nation Thursday evening that he plans to reduce the American troop presence in Iraq by as many as 30,000 by next summer but will condition those and further cuts on continued progress, The Associated Press has learned.

At least Anderson Cooper and CNN are telling it straight:

CNN's Anderson Cooper is in Iraq, reporting live from there this week as the Iraq debate here at home intensifies. This exchange is from yesterday's show:

COOPER: Michael Ware, Petraeus said that as many as 30,000 troops could leave by the beginning of next summer. It was sort of presented as though that was an operational decision.

In truth, it is really an operational necessity. The U.S. can't maintain these current troop levels, without putting even more strain on the -- on our already strained troops. Is that correct?

WARE: Yes, that is correct, Anderson. In fact, I'm struck by the way people are regarding General Petraeus' discussion of -- of those troop levels until July of next year. People are acting like he has just announced some sort of phased withdrawal. Well, no, not at all. That was the timeline for the so-called surge in the beginning.

Indeed, it wasn't a surge. It was a one-year escalation of U.S. forces. And the clock was due to run out on that escalation in the summer of next year anyway. So, that is not a revelation at all.