WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Top U.S. Democrats on Tuesday criticized President George W. Bush for not sending enough resources to Afghanistan to combat soaring violence and for pulling too few American troops out of Iraq.
Bush, an unpopular president fighting an unpopular war inIraq, said a dramatic drop in violence in that war zone wouldallow the U.S. military to shift its effort to Afghanistan,where he acknowledged that "huge challenges" remain.
He said some 8,000 combat and support personnel wouldreturn from Iraq by February 2009, while a fresh Marinebattalion and Army combat brigade would go to Afghanistan torespond to escalating attacks there and along the border withPakistan by Islamist militants.
But Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Democrat fromNevada, said Bush should be doing more to shift resources toAfghanistan.
"Given the increasingly violent situation in Afghanistanand Pakistan, I am stunned that President Bush has decided tobring so few troops home from Iraq and send so few resources toAfghanistan," Reid said.
The United States has 146,000 troops in Iraq and 33,000 inAfghanistan.
Any large-scale shift in U.S. forces in Iraq andAfghanistan will be left to Bush's successor -- eitherRepublican Sen. John McCain or Democratic Sen. Barack Obama.Bush will leave office in January after the November 4election.
Democrats, including Obama, have criticized Bush for beingtoo focused on Iraq instead of Afghanistan and its border withPakistan, where intelligence officials believe al Qaeda leaderand the mastermind of the September 11 attacks Osama bin Ladenis hiding.
"More significant troop reductions in Iraq are needed sothat we can start to rebuild U.S. military readiness andprovide the additional forces needed to finish the fight inAfghanistan," said Rep. Ike Skelton, chairman of the HouseArmed Services Committee and Missouri Democrat.
(Reporting by Jeremy Pelofsky; Editing by Kristin Roberts)
