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This image provided by the US Navy shows the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS John C, Stennis (CVN 74) steams out of Naval Base Kitsap Bremerton, WA Tuesday Jan. 16, 2007. As the USS Stennis aircraft carrier began its journey to the Gulf on Tuesday, top administration officials traveling in the region defended the increased U.S. presence there as the only way to impress on Iran that the four-year slog in Iraq has not made America vulnerable. (AP Photo/US Navy - Master Chief Jerry McLain)