The never-ending war machine. If Congress is going to cut the budget for everyone at home, why can we find the budget to continue this? Gates has to like the budget war at home, so Iraq mostly stays out of the press and out of mind for most Americans. BBC News:
US troops could if required by Iraq stay in the country beyond the agreed withdrawal date of 31 December, 2011, the US defence secretary has said.
Robert Gates, who is visiting Iraq, says an extended military presence is an option.
"If folks here are going to want us to have a presence, we're going to need to get on with it pretty quickly in terms of our planning," he said.
A large number of the 50,000 US troops in Iraq are due to leave in the summer.
