I guess this is the new Rovian math they were talking about

30,000 doesn't mean 30,000 anymore.

Via Joe Sudbay of Americablog, NPR interview with Petraeus:

I want to ask about the reduction in troops that you've talked about. I want to first make sure that I understand the numbers that you're talking about. It's been said that what you've described is a reduction in 30,000 troops. Is that, in fact, what you –

[Petraeus] What I've described is a reduction of five brigade combat teams, Army brigade combat teams, the Marine Expeditionary Unit, which actually is coming out this month without replacement, and two Marine battalions. Now, we want to take out other –

That's a little less than –

[Petraeus] Well, we have to do the math, candidly. We've got – I have not yet said how many thousands of troops.

So when people have said 30,000, they're not quite accurate. It might be 30,000 — it might be quite a bit less.

[Petraeus] Well, we've got to determine what it can be. The mission so far, in a sense, was to figure out how to bring these down while sustaining the gains that our troopers and Iraqi troopers have achieved, and also, then, to figure out the larger picture of where else can you reduce forces — which is something we want to do anyway.

So what on earth kind of tap dance will Bush be planning for his mighty-manly-mission-accomplished so-we're-unsurging speech tonight?