Collins opposes escalation

I just got off the phone with Sentaor Collins' office. A press release is expected to be out shortly, which will say that she opposes escalation, supports continuation of current force levels, but would deploy them differently. I'll post excerpts and a link as soon as the press release is on the web site.

Today, David Brooks led off his column decrying the lack of a clear plan offered by the Democrats. It's ironic that he would make comments like this as the Republican views are fragmenting--Brownback opposes escalation and raises doubts about the entire endeavor, Collins wants to keep the force in place but deployed differently, Smith just wants out, Graham follows the president wherever he goes.

We'll see how they vote, but it's clear just how much trouble the president is going to have to hold onto 34 Senators, especially when the casualty rates continue to rise.