Whether the troop withdrawal from major Iraq cities was pragmatic of President Barack Obama or a distortion of his campaign promises is a matter of debate in the Mahoning Valley.

Local political party chairmen on both sides of the aisle said it was a good thing to turn more of the country over to the Iraqis, but some of the strongest criticism of the plan in the area came from the left, by an activist who argues the move doesn't get troops out fast enough.

Christ Michelakis, the chair of the Trumbull County Democratic Party, said the administration was doing the right thing.

"He's keeping his promise. He said that we should draw back and this is the first step," Michelakis said.

Craig Bonar, head of the Trumbull County Republican Party, said it was "better for everybody" that more of the country's operation was turned over to the Iraqis, but the president may have been too brash in his campaign promises.

"We see more and more changes in his original promises. He's finding out that it's not possible to do everything you'd like to do," Bonar said.

The withdrawal of American troops from major Iraqi cities should not affect Obama's standing with the American people because he basically is continuing the same policy begun by the Bush Administration, said Keith J. Lepak, an associate professor in the Political Science Department at Youngstown State University.

"I view this as necessary for the political standings of Iraq politicians, because we still will have more than 130,000 Americans in the country at least until September,'' Lepak said. ''They just won't be in the cities. It plays more to the politics in Iraq."

The problem the United States faces is the kind of troops in terms of security arrangement, not the number of troops, Lepak said.

He called Obama pragmatic in his approach.

"Unless there is a significant increase in violence, this should be a no-lose situation of the Obama administration," Lepak said. "We have to be concerned with the border situation with Syria and Saudi Arabia. The borders are porous. We have to be concerned with outsiders going over the borders to in an effort to increase the level of violence."

But Ray Nakley of Peace Action Youngstown said the president's campaign promise of an Iraq pullout seems empty. Nakley's group has about 25 members and has demonstrated against the war.

"Most of the peace activists I'm aware of are very disappointed with President Obama. He campaigned on taking us out of Iraq, and even with the redeployment from cities to American outposts, we'll still have 130,000 troops in that country," he said.

The peace camp has been willing to give Obama a chance, but they advocate a complete pullout of Iraq and letting the Iraqi people handle their own affairs, Nakley said.

Talking about how the Iraqi people celebrated Tuesday as troops left the city, he said, "If they're that happy to see the backside of us, maybe it's time to make it real and get out of the country.''

The administration has until the fall to determine whether its current policies are working, Lepak said.

"By that time, the administration should know the potential and scope of violence in Iraq," he said.

The administration will have bigger problems in Afghanistan and Pakistan, Lepak said.

"The Pakistan government's actions already are causing more problems than it is necessary," he said. "It is causing a refugee problem, causing anger and is making it easier to recruit those who are against the government."

There are fundamentalists and military groups in the northern part of Pakistan, Lepak said.

The administration should be concerned how it will be able to increase the number of troops in Afghanistan during a period of fiscal crisis, Lepak said.

But Nakley said the United States should make sure the current Afghanistan government is "competent and serious about controlling the Taliban."

"If not, I think we're making things worse by staying in the country. If we don't have a partner working with us... I think we may go the way of Alexander and the British and the Soviets. No one has ever conquered that country," he said.

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