Petraeus Says 30,000 U.S. Troops Should be Home by Next Summer

The testimony that many were waiting for took place on Capital Hill Monday. David Petraeus, who is the nation's top military commander in Iraq, said that the U.S. may be able to withdraw 30,000 troops from Iraq by the time summer of 2008 comes around. According to ABC, Petraeus spoke in front of a joint session of the House Armed Services Committee and House Foreign Relations Committee to give a report on the future of the war. "I believe that we will be able to reduce our forces to the pre-surge level ... by next summer without jeopardizing the security gains we have fought so hard to achieve," Petraeus said. President George Bush increased the number of troops going to Iraq between February and June of this year. With the projected decrease of troops by next summer, the amount of troops in Iraq will be roughly the same as there was before the deployment burst. Just like the war, the testimony was met with controversy. Anti-war protestors were escorted out for making a scene. They want the troops out all together, but others view that as a death sentence.