He is very likely correct in this, although it is hard to see how any course will not have devastating consequences at this point. The all-important question is, Which set of devastating consequences are we willing to accept so as to ensure our national security most effectively and stem the advance of the global jihad most definitively? From Thomson Financial:
WASHINGTON (Thomson Financial) – US war commander General David Petraeus warned a ‘premature’ withdrawal of US troops from Iraq would be ‘devastating.’
‘A premature draw-down of our forces would likely have devastating consequences,’ Petraeus said at a crucial hearing of the House of Representatives Armed Services and Foreign Affairs committees.
The four-star general said that though the 168,000 US troop number in Iraq could start to be reduced to and beyond levels which existed before the current troop surge, further decision on force numbers could not be made until next March.
‘In my professional judgment, it would be premature to make recommendations on the pace of such reductions at this time,’ Petraeus said.