Withdraw in 2006, troops in Iraq say

UPDATE: John Zogby, whose firm did the poll, writes: A letter from the troops.

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Supporters of the war in Iraq always say we should ask the troops if we're in doubt about whether we should be there.

Someone has done that, and actually taken a poll, with some surprising results:

U.S. Troops in Iraq: 72% Say End War in 2006

Le Moyne College/Zogby Poll shows just one in five troops want to heed Bush call to stay “as long as they are needed”

While 58% say mission is clear, 42% say U.S. role is hazy

Plurality believes Iraqi insurgents are mostly homegrown

Almost 90% think war is retaliation for Saddam’s role in 9/11, most don’t blame Iraqi public for insurgent attacks

Majority of troops oppose use of harsh prisoner interrogation

Plurality of troops pleased with their armor and equipment

The poll is suspect for a number of reasons, including its sponsorship by a college Center for Peace and Global Studies, along with Zogby pollsters.

And there's this unusual methodology:

The survey included 944 military respondents interviewed at several undisclosed locations throughout Iraq. The names of the specific locations and specific personnel who conducted the survey are being withheld for security purposes. Surveys were conducted face-to-face using random sampling techniques. The margin of error for the survey, conducted Jan. 18 through Feb. 14, 2006, is +/- 3.3 percentage points.

But even if the margin of error is 33 points, instead of 3.3, there is strong support among the troops to end the war this year.

Hat tip: Political Wire.