IRAQ'S ELECTED LEADERS ASSERT 2006 WITHDRAWAL OF US FORCES WILL BE POSSIBLE

Fellow blogger and frequent commenter PASTORIUS suggested I make this bit, from an earlier post, the lead (NYTIMES):

On Monday, Iraq's interior minister, Bayan Jabr, said American-led forces should be able to leave Iraq by the end of next year, adding that the one-year extension of the mandate for the multinational force in Iraq by the United Nations Security Council earlier this month could be the last, The Associated Press reported. "By mid-next year, we will be 75 percent done in building our forces, and by the end of next year it will be fully ready," Mr. Jabr told Al Jazeera, the pan-Arab news channel.

Let's get this straight, President Talabani, Deputy PM Chalabi and the Interior Minister have NOW ALL GONE ON RECORD and all confirmed this goal. THAT'S GREAT. They feel that with the GREAT US help they're getting - in defending their nascent democracy and training them to defend themselves - they will soon be able to dio just that. GREAT: We must do whatever we can to make sure they meet it.

So, er... um... what the heck are the Murtha/McGovernite Dem-Lefties whining about!?

UPDATE: MORE HERE AND HERE.