Governor says Iraq 'less bad'

After spending Thanksgiving with Utah troops in Iraq, Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. said the situation in the war-torn country has gone "from bad to less bad" since his last visit in 2006.

Huntsman was the only governor to accompany a group of senators led by Sen. John McCain of Arizona, a GOP presidential candidate, on a two-day visit to Iraq that included stops in Baghdad, Kirkuk and the Anbar Province.

"My reason for going over there was simply that it was Thanksgiving" and a good time to express thanks to the troops serving in Iraq, especially those from Utah, Huntsman told reporters at a press conference Monday.

He said it "was a joy" to sit down to a Thanksgiving meal with Utah troops first in Baghdad and later in the Anbar Province, as well as meeting with other Utah troops securing detention facilities and performing other duties.

"Let's face it, the war is a very divisive issue and everyone has their individual opinions about the war, but I think we're all together in terms of our support the troops," he said. "My desire was to go there and do whatever I could in country by thanking them."

About 750 Utahns currently are deployed mostly in Iraq but also to Afghanistan, and another 350 troops from the Beehive State are expected to join them in the first months of 2008, Huntsman said.

Besides time with the troops, Huntsman and the delegation also met with military and political leaders, including Gen. David Petraeus, the top U.S. commander in Iraq, and Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.

The governor said security is better in Iraq after the troop surge, describing what he saw as a "sharp improvement" over his previous visits. Still, he said while the daily death toll from bombings and other violence is down, there are still problems.

"These things don't go from bad to good. They go from bad to less bad," Huntsman said.

Now it's time for the Iraqis to step up and take advantage of the "relative calm," the governor said, and implement the changes needed to stabilize the country, including setting up a strong central government.

If they don't, he said, the "message has been sent loud and clear that the people in this country will not put up with a troop presence in Iraq," at least not a significant one. Even McCain, who has insisted the war must be won, understands that, Huntsman said.

It was the governor's third trip to Iraq since taking office in 2005, and his second with McCain. Unlike most Utahns, Huntsman is backing McCain for president and has repeatedly hit the campaign trail for him.

Huntsman said McCain asked him to come because of both their friendship and the perspective he could offer. Governors serve as commanders in chief of the National Guard, many of the troops being deployed to Iraq, Afghanistan and other parts of the Middle East.

He first traveled to the region in March 2006 with another delegation led by McCain and then again in November of that year with other governors at the invitation of the U.S. Defense Department.

The rest of the delegation on this trip, which began last Wednesday and ended Saturday, were Sens. Joe Lieberman, I-Conn.; Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.; Saxby Chambliss, R-Ga.; and John Barrasso, R-Wyo.

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