The turmoil at the Pentagon is not new, but it has been inflamed by the next phase of troop deployments. Last fall, Petraeus and the Joint Chiefs agreed to a plan to wind down the "surge" but quelled debate over further troop cuts by putting off that discussion until this spring.
Some military officers think that compromise was upended when Petraeus proposed a temporary halt in further troop cuts in the second half of this year. Those officers believe the command in Iraq did an end run around the process, effectively cutting the Joint Chiefs out of this spring's debate.
Supporters of Petraeus, on the other hand, argue that the Joint Chiefs are putting pressure on Gates to resume troop withdrawals after a short break later this year. Officials in Washington have spoken of a pause of about six weeks. But in Iraq some want to see a much longer delay before more troops are pulled out.
"I think it is unfortunate we put a timeline on it. I am not sure we can get much of an answer in six weeks," the former Defense official said. "I think an appropriate timeline would be four to six months to make the proper assessment."
Petraeus and other officers in Baghdad downplay the difference of opinion.
A senior military official in Iraq said that Petraeus had begun to make inroads with skeptics. Over the course of the last year, Petraeus has worked to convince Fallon of the merits of his strategy, the senior officer said. And in a brief interview last week, Petraeus dismissed the idea that the two "didn't see the world the same way, or something like that."
"You know, we had different jobs and it's understandable that we might come at an issue a little bit differently, but it was always a constructive relationship," Petraeus said.
But some current and former officers said they would be surprised if Petraeus agreed to more than a token drawdown in the second half of 2008. These officers think pulling out too quickly could lead to a repeat of mistakes the U.S. made in 2005 and 2006, when military leaders planned for sharp reductions despite rising violence.
"We have to remember these are the very areas where we have made mistakes in the past," the former official said. "We underestimated the enemy and overestimated the Iraqis' capacity to hold without us. Those two mistakes led to a failed strategy."
But officers skeptical of the surge think putting off cuts for too long is misguided.
"If the surge has been as successful as it purports to be, this is an ideal time to start the drawdown," said the officer who has advised the Joint Chiefs. "Violence is at an all-time low. We have turned the corner at the tactical level, so now is the time to redeploy those forces. So people are saying, 'Why wait four months?' "
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julian.barnes@latimes.com
Times staff writer Alexandra Zavis in Baghdad contributed to this report.
