WASHINGTON, D.C. – Maine’s two U.S. senators expressed support for President George Bush following his speech Tuesday evening, but both also showed concern about long tours of duty for reservists and National Guard troops.

“I agree with the president that it is imperative for our country to demonstrate resolve in Iraq. I also am pleased to hear the president state that he is talking with the combatant commanders about the number of troops necessary to do the job as safely and effectively as possible,” said Sen. Susan Collins, a Republican, in a prepared release.

“I believe, however, that the answer to the need for more troops is not to extend the tours of duty of National Guard members and reservists who have already served a hard year in Iraq. Instead, we should look at reassigning active duty troops serving elsewhere, and we should redouble our efforts to urge other countries to join the effort to bring security and freedom to Iraq,” Collins said.

Sen. Olympia Snowe, also a Republican, made similar statements, supporting Bush but calling for fairness in the assigning of troops.

“The value of our military force in Iraq to a successful transition of power cannot be overstated, as the president made clear tonight,” Snowe said in her prepared statement. “Security in Iraq is the foundation from which a more stable Middle East can be built. But peace and stability will be more quickly realized if the international community joins our efforts in Iraq. It should not be forgotten that a peaceful Iraq is not only in the interest of the United States, but each and every country around the globe.”

A member of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, Snowe acknowledged that changes must be made to the nation’s intelligence-gathering operations based on an analysis of the events leading to the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

Snowe said her committee has performed its own analysis of intelligence-gathering efforts and is in the process of finalizing a report that will “provide specific, meaningful recommendations for systemic change to ensure that policy makers have the best, most reliable information.”