I t’s been nearly a week since The Associated Press published a news analysis with the provocative title “U.S. now winning Iraq war that seemed lost.”
The analysis was written by Robert Burns, the AP’s chief military reporter, and Robert Reid, the wire service’s Baghdad bureau chief.
Burns and Reid observed that “limited, sometimes sharp fighting and periodic terrorist bombings in Iraq are likely to continue, possibly for years.
But the Iraqi government and the U.S. now are able to shift focus from mainly combat to mainly building the fragile beginnings of peace — a transition that many found almost unthinkable as recently as one year ago.”
Clearly, President Bush’s military surge worked, and he will leave office with a magnificent accomplishment — a peaceful, democratic Iraq — within sight.
What hasn’t been heard in the week since the AP article appeared are admissions from the president’s most strident critics that they were wrong about the surge.
Restoring civility in American political debate would be especially advanced by admissions from these critics:
– “The surge is a bad idea.” – Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, Jan. 1, 2007
– “[The surge] has failed to produce the intended results.” – Reid and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, June 13, 2007
– “What was striking to me in listening to all the testimony that was provided was the almost near unanimity that the president’s strategy will not work.” – Sen. Barack Obama, Jan. 24, 2007
– “I tell you what, I’m confident it will not work.” – Sen. John Kerry, Jan. 24, 2007
– “Why do we want to stop the surge? Because we don’t agree with the mission.” – Sen. Joe Biden, Jan. 24, 2007
– “The surge has to be stopped. It is a reckless, almost mindless approach to a desperately difficult situation.” – Sen. Russ Feingold, Jan. 8, 2007
– “As much as I wish we were able to secure Iraq ourselves, that the surge would work, or that our military presence in Iraq would bring about the compromises necessary, I think the evidence is clear it is not happening, and it will not happen.” – Sen. Chris Dodd, May 15, 2007
– “It’s a failure in terms of not achieving what its goal needs to be, which is a political settlement.” – Sen. Carl Levin, April 20, 2007
– “I’m absolutely convinced that right now the surge isn’t working, and I’m convinced that if they don’t pay attention to what I’m saying … they’re going to have a disaster on their hands because the American public wants the troops out of Iraq.” – Rep. Jack Murtha, June 3, 2007
