Pennsylvania's Rep. Jason Altmire, D-McCandless, said yesterday he expects that Army Gen. David Petraeus, who is to report to Congress next month on the situation in Iraq, will recommend a timeline for reducing the presence of U.S. troops.

"I am very optimistic that Gen. Petraeus is going to probably recommend something along those lines," Mr. Altmire said at Pittsburgh International Airport, where he returned from a three-day trip to Iraq and a meeting with the U.S. military's commander there.

"I'm not going to speak for him, ... but after being involved in the meeting, I think he understands and will make the statement that the commitment with the surge and our troop availability over the oncoming months is probably unsustainable over the long term."

Mr. Altmire would not reveal details of the 1 ¹/₂-hour session he and three other congressmen had with Gen. Petraeus and U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker, but he said "the tone of the conversation seemed to indicate that the escalation of troops is unsustainable, ... which would indicate to me that we need to change course to move forward."

The congressional delegation spent 22 hours in Iraq, including a trip out of the Green Zone to the town of Fallujah, meeting with military leaders, soldiers and Iraqi government members. Mr. Altmire praised the troops who "are doing everything that is being asked of them," but had a harsh assessment of the Iraqi leaders.

The purpose of the surge, he said, was "to open up some breathing space," so that the government of Iraq could get on its feet. "The political leadership in Iraq has not only failed to make progress in nearly every measurable way, but, in many cases, they have gone backward," he said. "They do nothing but posture and position. There is no sense of urgency.

"The Iraqi government is nowhere near being able to make the difficult decisions that they need, and certainly nowhere near willing to make those decisions to move forward."

Mr. Altmire said the purpose of his visit to Iraq was to have "a frank discussion" with Gen. Petraeus. "I didn't want any White House fingerprints on the report," he said. "And Gen. Petraeus reassured me that what is going to be in his report is going to be his view -- a candid assessment of what's happening on the ground, some of which, he said, the administration is probably not going to like."

Mr. Altmire said, "I think the only way we have to demonstrate to them in the Iraqi government that we're serious about this, and that they do have to step up to the plate and manage their own affairs, is by using the only remaining leverage that we have, and that's our presence in Iraq, which they depend on for their day-to-day security."

He said that view was "solidified" by a meeting with Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Salam al-Zubaie.

"He had a smirk on his face during the meeting. He seemed to enjoy telling us that they didn't care," Mr. Altmire said. "I was very disappointed. He sees no end in sight for the American involvement. He views this as an open-ended commitment, and they can dither while our men and women fight and die over in Iraq."

But Mr. Altmire stressed that any congressional call for a timeline should not be attached to military appropriations. "I am never going to vote to cut the funding while we have men and women in harm's way, deployed in the field of battle," he said.