Retired Iraq commander backs Democratic proposal to bring troops home

Retired Army Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, the top commander in Iraq shortly after the fall of Baghdad, says he supports Democratic legislation that calls for most American troops to come home from Iraq within a year.

His comments are welcome ammunition for the Democratic-controlled Congress in its standoff with the White House on war spending. This month, the House of Representatives passed a $50 billion (euro33.75 billion) bill that would pay for combat operations but set the goal that combat end by Dec. 15, 2008. The White House threatened to veto the measure, and President George W. Bush's Republican colleagues in the Senate blocked its passage.

The Defense …