An Examination of the Candidates' Stances on Iraq

WASHINGTON — More than five years after President Bush declared that major combat operations in Iraq were over, there are roughly 150,000 U.S. troops fighting in Iraq, where more than 4,100 Americans have died.

Perhaps no single issue more clearly defines the differences between presidential hopefuls John McCain, a Vietnam War veteran who was an early backer of the invasion of Iraq, and Barack Obama, who opposed the war from the start.

Long a proponent of increased U.S. troop levels, McCain, the ranking Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, cheered last year's surge, which raised American forces in Iraq to a peak of 170,000.

The force has since drifted down to roughly 150,000.

Obama, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, opposed the surge, calling it "reckless," and introduced legislation aimed at withdrawing most U.S. troops by March, 2008.

Here is a look at how the candidates say they would approach the Iraq war as president.

OBAMA

Key Positions

- Pull out most U.S. combat troops by the summer of 2010

- Retain residual force to combat al-Qaida; protect U.S. forces and diplomats; and train and support Iraqi security forces.

- $2 billion for Iraqi refugee relief

- Launch a "diplomatic surge" to include talks with all of Iraq's neighbors, including Iran and Syria

- Foreswear permanent U.S. bases

Cost

Obama's policy, if implemented, would quickly begin to reduce U.S. spending on the war, estimated at roughly $10 billion a month. He would take that figure down to a fraction of its current level by the summer of 2010.

Record

Obama was not in the senate in 2002, when the majority in both houses of Congress voted overwhelmingly to authorize the use of force against Iraq. At the time, though, he opposed the war. In January, 2007, he opposed the troop surge - saying that "no amount of American soldiers can solve the political differences at the heart of somebody else's civil war" - and introduced legislation calling for a drawdown instead, with most combat forces out of Iraq by March, 2008. The bill has not come up for a vote by the full Senate.

In His Words

"I want Iraqis to take responsibility for their own future, and to reach the political accommodation necessary for long-term stability. That's victory. That's success. That's what's best for Iraq, that's what's best for America, and that's why I will end this war as president." July 15

MCCAIN

Key Positions

- Continue current counter-insurgency efforts at troop levels recommended by U.S. commanders on the ground

- Reduce force levels in step with security and political gains; envisions most troops out by 2013

- Press Iraq's Shiite-majority government to employ greater numbers of rival Sunnis, as part of a broader effort to heat up the Iraqi economy

- Increase U.S. military presence in the region

- Step up U.S. and international pressure on Iran and Syria

Cost

McCain's approach envisions little short-term reduction in the current cost of the war, estimated at roughly $10 billion a month. His plan would gradually reduce that cost, however, to a fraction of its current level by 2013.

Record

McCain voted in 2002 to authorize the use of force against Iraq. He has been one of the few Republicans to criticize the Bush administration for its handling of the war, saying there have been too few U.S. forces in Iraq to secure the country. He has also criticized the U.S. handling of prisoners in Iraq. In 2004 he said he had "no confidence" in Donald Rumsfeld, who was then Secretary of Defense.

In His Words

"The surge has succeeded. And because of its success, the next president will inherit a situation in Iraq in which America's enemies are on the run, and our soldiers are beginning to come home. ././. I know how to win wars. And if I'm elected president, I will turn around the war in Afghanistan, just as we have turned around the war in Iraq." July 15