Here it comes! Here comes the admin framing of "victory in Iraq"!

[TheGunslinger]

Rumsfeld Announces U.S. Troop Reduction in Iraq
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/12/23/AR2005122300266.html

Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld announced today that the number of U.S. troops in Iraq would be reduced by two brigades early next year, a move which would cut U.S. forces there by 8,000 to 10,000 troops.

The "adjustment," as Rumsfeld called it, would leave between 129,000 and 131,000 troops in the country, down from a baseline of 138,000. That baseline number was augmented for Iraq's election by another 12,000 troops.

...

"The adjustment being announced today is in recognition of the Iraqi people's progress in assuming added responsibility for their country," Rumsfeld said. He added that all reductions were "conditioned" on events.

"We anticipate future coalition force-level discussions at some point in 2006, after the new Iraqi government is in place and is prepared to discuss the future," Rumsfeld said.

There you have it. Even though an extra 22,000 troops were added to provide extra security for the recent elections (as has been done for other milestone political events in Iraq), the administration is using the withdrawal of only some of those extra troops as some sort of victory knell.

The administration has no shame.