In a televised speech on September 13, 2007, President George W. Bush called for a continuing military presence in Iraq and announced that 5,700 troops would return from Iraq without replacement by the end of 2007. Bush cited security improvements in Anbar province as evidence that the surge is working and said that the United States' presence in Iraq will likely extend past his presidency, well into 2009.

1. "What the president told the American people tonight is that one year from now, there will be the same number of troops in Iraq as there were one year ago. That is simply too little too late, and unacceptable to this Congress and the American people who have made clear their strong desire to bring our brave troops home."—Democratic Senator Hillary Clinton
2. "I think what I find interesting is the lack of appreciation of success on the part of many of my friends on the other side of the aisle, success that we have achieved in a relatively short period of time after four years of failure under the Rumsfeld doctrine, strategy, which was a disaster."—Republican Senator John McCain