WASHINGTON, DC -- A bipartisan group of senators today introduced an amendment that would require the President to begin reducing the number of American troops in Iraq within four months and to transition the mission of our remaining military forces there to force protection, training of Iraqi Security Forces, and counterterrorism missions. It would further provide that our troops be out of Iraq by April 30, 2008, except for those needed for the specified limited missions.

The senators introducing the amendment include Sens. Carl Levin (D-MI), Jack Reed (D-RI), Gordon Smith (R-OR), Chuck Hagel (R-NE), John Kerry (D-MA), Olympia Snowe (R-ME), Joe Biden (D-DE), Barack Obama (D-IL), and Hillary Clinton (D-NY).

"The open-ended occupation of a Muslim country by western countries has played into the hands of Al Qaeda," Sen. Levin said. "If there is any hope of forcing the Iraqi political leaders to take responsibility for their own country, it is to have a timetable for the reduction of American forces and the redeployment of those forces to more limited support missions, instead of being everybody's target in the middle of a civil war. Passage of this bipartisan amendment will hopefully prod the Iraqi government to reach a political settlement, which everybody agrees is necessary to end the violence."

"Today, a bipartisan group of senators are coming together to responsibly change course in Iraq," said Sen. Reed. "Our amendment directs the President to undertake a policy that is consistent with the reality in Iraq, consistent with the advice of our commanders in the field, and consistent with keeping our nation safe. Our troops are fighting hard and doing a magnificent job, and we owe them a strategy that is worthy of their sacrifice. I hope a significant number of our colleagues will join us in supporting this measure."

"We need to be fighting terrorists not civil wars," Sen. Smith said. "Iraq's peace is one they must win on their own; we cannot win it for them. Our might should be focused on stopping terrorists who are plotting to bring harm to the United States."

"This amendment is about more than redefining the mission for our troops and establishing a timeline for a phased withdrawal of combat troops," said Sen. Hagel. "It establishes the creation of an international mediator under UN auspices who can work toward a political accommodation to break the cycle of violence in Iraq. Greater international involvement which removes the American face from Iraq is the only way to political accommodation."

"No more talk, no more excuses, it's time to vote and choose between the Bush escalation and a change of course. This is a test of whether Bush critics will still tow the line or whether they'll join us to establish a firm deadline to redeploy our troops out of Iraq and force Iraqis to finally stand up for Iraq," Sen. Kerry said. "It's stunning to me that this war costs American taxpayers $10 billion a month, and that even after the ill-advised escalation we still have little to show for the brave sacrifices our men and women have made in Iraq. This policy isn't working. We need to change course, we need to end this war."

"We have arrived at the crossroads of hope and reality, and we must now address the reality," said Sen. Snowe. "We need to send a strong message from the United States Congress on behalf of the American people that the current strategy is unacceptable and that we must move in a different course. As I have stated for months and underscored in the bipartisan legislation I introduced in May, if the Iraqi government failed meet the political benchmarks necessary for success than we would transition to a more tailored mission in Iraq, one that does not limit our ability to counter Al Qaeda operations in the region, and redeploy the remaining forces. We are past non-binding resolutions but we are also not abandoning the mission in Iraq. We cannot continue to keep our brave military men and women on the front lines if the Iraqi government is unwilling to put national interests above their own sectarian interests."

This amendment is identical to one unveiled by Levin and Reed yesterday, with the addition of language - originally included in an amendment by Sen. Hagel - that provides that the president direct the U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations to use the voice, vote, and influence of the United States at the U.N. to seek the appointment of an international mediator in Iraq to engage political, religious, ethnic, and tribal leaders in Iraq in an inclusive political process.