“The American people are eager for a plan on Iraq that makes sense, and our brave troops are eager for leadership that equals the sacrifice they are making for our country. The reality is: George W. Bush doesn't have a plan for Iraq, and misleading rhetoric about 'staying as long as it takes' will never add up to a plan,” said Kerry. “To undermine the insurgency, we have to simultaneously pursue both a political settlement and the withdrawal of American combat forces linked to specific, responsible benchmarks. Senator Leahy has long been a voice of conscience on the war, and I am delighted he is joining with me today to turn up the heat on the administration to do what's right for our country and our troops. After the successful December elections, we can and should bring 20,000 troops home. It's a critical first step."

“America's brave armed forces should not have to serve another day without a clear, concrete plan for achieving America's goals in Iraq and bringing the troops home,” said Leahy. “The Administration and the Republican Leadership need to start talking straight with the American people about the situation on the ground in Iraq and explain why they are unwilling to conduct investigations about the intelligence they cited to lead us into war in the first place.”

Kerry, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and Leahy, the ranking member of Foreign Operations Appropriations Subcommittee, said that bringing 20,000 troops home by the holidays is the critical first part of a specific timetable for the transfer of political and security responsibility to Iraqis and a realignment of U.S. troop deployment. That timetable must be real and strict.

The goal of Kerry’s plan is to withdraw the bulk of American combat forces by the end of 2006.

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