Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates smiles when asked if he is considering staying on with the next administration during a joint press conference with Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Adm. Mike Mullen at the Pentagon, July 31, 2008. Gates said he is planning on leaving in 173 days, at the end of the current administration. Defense Dept. photo by Cherie Cullen

Members from the California Air National Guard's 129th Rescue Wing, 144th Fighter Wing, 146th Airlift Wing, 163rd Reconnaissance Wing and 162nd Combat Communications Group walk to the forest outside of Paradise City, Calif., July 27, 2008 to conduct fireline training during Operation Lightning Strike. More than 200 members from the various California wings were called up to help fight the wildland fires in Northern California. U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Dan Kacir

U.S. Army Spc. Jesse A. Murphree, left, greets his 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team comrades returning from deployment in Afghanistan, on the flight line at Aviano Air Base, Italy, July 22, 2008. Murphree lost his legs in a roadside bomb attack in the Korengal Valley, near Ali Abad, Afghanistan, Dec. 27, 2007. He has been undergoing treatment at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center. U.S. Army photo by Dave Melancon

A U.S. soldier speaks to an Iraqi man during a humanitarian aid mission in a village in the Jazeera desert in Iraq, July 26, 2008. The soldier is assigned to the 101st Airborne Division's 2nd Battalion, 320th Field Artillery Regiment. U.S. and Iraqi soldiers distributed toys, clothing and medical supplies during the mission. U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Micky M. Bazaldua

U.S. Navy Master Chief Petty Officer Joe R. Campa Jr. discusses the 60th anniversary of the integration of the armed forces during an interview with the Pentagon Channel, Washington, D.C., July 30, 2008. U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Jennifer A. Villalovos

U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Anthony Cathcart holds his daughter after arriving at Ellsworth Air Force Base, S.D., July 29, 2008. Cathcart is one of 309 airmen returning home from a six-month deployment to Southwest Asia and is an aerospace maintenance journeyman assigned to the 28th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron. U.S. Air Force photo by Airman Corey Hook

A U.S. Air Force C-17 Globemaster III loadmaster guides a 10-ton armored tractor as it unloads a communication trailer designed to provide phone service to the Victory Base Complex in Baghdad, Iraq, July 28, 2008. Airmen assigned to the 447th Air Expeditionary Group and U.S. soldiers assigned to the 553rd Combat Sustainment Support Battalion delivered two of the 66-foot, 80,000 pound trailers. U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Brian Davidson

U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Alan L. Scott inspects a KC-135 Stratotanker refueling aircraft brake assembly on March Air Reserve Base, Calif., July 30, 2008. Scott is a pneudraulics technician assigned to the 452nd Maintenance Squadron. U.S. Air Force photo by Val Gempis