Sentence:  Gen. Maxwell Taylor 's statement in Saigon that he <WSD>is</WSD> `` very much encouraged '' about the chances of the pro-Western government of Viet Nam turning back Communist guerrilla attacks comes close to an announcement that he will not recommend dispatching United States troops to bolster the Vietnamese Army . 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  have the quality of being; (copula, used with an adjective or a predicate noun)