Poll: Candidates' Iraq plans split voters

WASHINGTON, July 15 (UPI) -- Poll respondents are closely divided on the two likely major party presidential candidates' positions for withdrawing U.S. military from Iraq, a poll indicates.

The Washington Post-ABC News poll released Tuesday indicated voters were split nearly evenly between the 50 percent supporting likely Democratic nominee Sen. Barack Obama's 16-month timetable to withdraw troops from Iraq and the 49 percent favoring presumptive Republican nominee Sen. John McCain's stance that events should drive when troops are redeployed.

Among independents, the poll indicated 53 percent oppose Obama's timeline, The Washington Post said.

On Iraq policy in general, 47 percent of those polled said they trust McCain, a U.S. senator form Arizona, to handle the war in Iraq while 45 percent put their faith in Obama.

Respondents were evenly divided on that question of whether Obama, a U.S. senator from Illinois, would be an effective military leader -- 48 percent saying he would and 48 saying he wouldn't.

The Washington Post-ABC poll was conducted by telephone July 10-13 among a national sample of 1,119 adults. It has a margin of error of 3 percentage points.