"The effects of our words"

AP: Rumsfeld: Commanders will determine pullout---

WASHINGTON - While some lawmakers press for a timetable for withdrawing U.S. troops from Iraq, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld made no promises on Sunday and said commanders’ assessments will determine the pace of any military drawdown.

About 160,000 U.S. troops are in Iraq as the country approaches elections Dec. 15. The Pentagon has said it plans to scale back troop strength to its pre-election baseline of 138,000, depending on conditions.

Rumsfeld said the U.S.-led coalition continues to make progress in training Iraqi security forces, which he placed at 212,000.

Rumsfeld disputed reports that fewer than 1,000 Iraqis were capable of fighting the insurgency without coalition assistance, saying the lower number was “a red herring.”

“The Iraqi security forces are out engaged in the fight. Some are in the lead, some are working with us in tandem, others are working with us where we have the lead, and that’s perfectly understandable,” he said on ABC’s “This Week.”
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Rumsfeld suggested that talk of withdrawal tells insurgents that “if they wait, they prevail, and they’ll be able to turn that country into a haven for terrorism.” U.S. troops, he said, believe they are making progress in a noble cause in which the U.S. will prevail.

“We have to all have the willingness to have a free debate, but we also all have to have the willingness to understand what the effects of our words are,” he said.