Hey, Joe

He calls the Senate's Friedmans and raises two more.

But isn't 18 months — and that would be the timeline set out by the tougher House bill — isn't that enough time to force the parties in Iraq to find a political solution?

I must say that the more troubling of the timelines here is [that] the Senate provision really orders that the troops begin withdrawing within 120 days regardless of what's happening on the ground, regardless of the impact on our allies in the Middle East, regardless of the impact of withdrawing on our own national security and credibility. That just doesn't make any sense, particularly at a time when we have a new general, David Petraeus, commanding our troops in Iraq. We have new troops and we have a new plan. And from independent reports, it actually began — it seems to be showing some encouraging success. Why — why would you, at this moment, order a retreat?

So 18 months is okay? Unfortunately, he isn't asked. Instead he goes on to confuse "elections" with "public opinion polls."