Administration debates troop 'surge' internally

WASHINGTON -- In Congress, a passionate debate over the war in Iraq ended abruptly in legislative deadlock this week, leaving President Bush free to continue his military buildup into September. But inside the administration, a less visible but no less passionate debate is quietly under way -- over whether the "surge" should continue even longer.

Army General David H. Petraeus, the top commander in Iraq, is expected to present Bush with several options in a key report in September, along with an analysis of where each path might lead.

Iraqi official doubtful nation's forces can assume control by end of year. A7

But senior administration officials are far from unified over the question of whether progress over the summer should lead to an extension of the surge or to an opportunity to declare victory and end the increase in forces.

Evidence is mounting that military commanders favor a continuation of the buildup, which now stands at 158,000 troops, through next spring.

Yesterday, two senior military commanders in Iraq indicated that efforts to stabilize their provinces will stretch well beyond September.

But support for continuing the troop buildup into next year is not universal within the administration.

Most significant , Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates repeatedly has said he would like to see a drawdown begin before the end of the year, and has signaled that the September report could be used as a point to begin withdrawals.

The administration was able to quell rebellious Republicans on Capitol Hill this week, but the job probably will be more difficult in September.

That's when several leading GOP moderates -- including Senators John Warner of Virginia and Richard G. Lugar of Indiana, two key voices on national security matters -- indicated they would be more receptive to changes in strategy.

The White House has signaled it is well aware of the sensitivities.

White House spokesman Tony Snow insisted that comments made by military commanders in Iraq against prematurely terminating the surge were not efforts to reach beyond the September report.

Among the commanders suggesting this week that an early end to the surge might be ill-advised were Army Major General Rick Lynch, commander of US troops to the south of Baghdad; Marine Major General Walter E. Gaskin, the commander of US forces in western al-Anbar Province; and Army Lieutenant General Raymond T. Odierno, the day-to-day commander in Iraq.

"This is not an attempt to buy more time," Snow said at his daily White House briefing. "The generals obviously are interested in continuing, because they think that they've got successful and important operations, but they also realize that there are challenges."

Odierno raised eyebrows Thursday by suggesting he might need until November to assess the long-term prospects of the troop buildup.

He clarified his remarks 24 hours later, saying yesterday that he recognized the importance of the September report.

But he repeated his argument that November would be a better time to assess the situation.

"There is no intention to push our reporting requirement beyond September," Odierno said in a statement released by his headquarters in Baghdad . "My reference to November was simply suggesting that as we go forward beyond September, we will gain more understanding of trends."