Senator Jim Inhofe, second ranking member on the Senate Armed Services Committee who has visited Iraq 15 times, today made the following statement in response to recent recommendations by Members of Congress for President Bush to prematurely and arbitrarily draw down troop levels in Iraq: “I have said time and again that I have faith in the generals and soldiers on the ground running the war. A majority of the Senate voted to give General Petraeus until mid-September to implement a successful new surge strategy, and any effort to cut short this timeline and set an arbitrary withdrawal deadline is premature and irresponsible. The last thing we need is 535 ‘Generals’ in Congress telling our troops how to win this fight.” Inhofe's statement followed by hours one from Republican Senator John Warner of Virginia, who said it is time to start bringing U. S. troops home.