Afghanistan and Iraq Numbers

In the final month of the Bush administration (December 2008), the United States had about 160,000 military and 220,000 contractors in Afghanistan and Iraq combined. The surge had worked in Iraq and we were making great progress in Afghanistan although more troops were needed.
In June 2009 (the most recent month for which numbers are available), the Obama administration had 185,000 military and 195,000 contractors in Afghanistan and Iraq. We are now losing ground in both wars.
This is the "change you can believe in".