D.C. & IRAQ: BUSH'S WAY......( political conflagration predicted is going to fizzle)

NY Post ^ | September 5, 2007 | John Podhotetz

[IrishMike]

LET me make a fearless pre diction here, one that I would not have made six weeks ago: George W. Bush - you know, that deeply unpopular president who has lost all credibility with the American people, or so they say - is going to get his way yet again on Iraq.

The new strategy in Iraq - the so-called surge - will continue through the winter and into the spring. In theory, there should be enough anti-war Democrats and fed-up Republicans to bring about a confrontation that would force Bush to short-circuit the surge. But it's not going to happen.

The political conflagration everybody predicted for this month is going to fizzle, and here's why: It's the safest option for both parties.

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All indications are that Petraeus will offer convincing evidence of startling and unexpected progress against al Qaeda and the Sunni insurgency, while Crocker will offer a far more mixed analysis of Iraqi political efforts to achieve political reconciliation.

Petraeus will surely offer sober and careful qualifiers about the tenuous nature of the progress, but that won't be the headline from his report. Crocker will surely say that the surge is promising and should continue, but that won't be the headline from his report.

Crocker's uncomfortable words will be enough to give Democratic senators and congressmen ammunition to continue describing Bush as the proponent and executor of a failed policy - which should be enough to deny the policy legitimacy in the eyes of many skeptics and the entirety of the anti-war community.

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But that answer will not satisfy anyone who has already given up, or anyone who has, consciously or not, begun actively to root for an American defeat in order to cause Bush the maximum possible humiliation.

[rhombus]

This seems like a reasonable prediction of what we’re about to see. I do however expect at least one more fund-raising time table withdrawal vote on the part of the Democrats. They have to keep their Netroots Move0n.org party faithful in line for the election so they’ll have to appease them with more meaningless theater.

[IrishMike]

MoveOn vs. Democrats
Punishing Congressmen for reporting what they see in Iraq.

http://www.opinionjournal.com/editorial/feature.html?id=110010562

[nathanbedford]

Harry Reid the will suseurrate

susurrate, verb

1. To issue soft noises

Ya gotta love free Republic

[Reo]

Last night the Lehrer News Hour had a discussion among 4 congresscritters including Jan Schakowsky of the Peoples Republic of Chicago’s North Shore who represented the Dims “Cut n’ Run” crowd. She was clearly on the defensive throughout the whole segment, agitated and continually and angrily interrupting the other 3, who all favored surge extension. She and her crowd are losing this debate and they know it.

[IrishMike]

She and her crowd are losing this debate and they know it.

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The retreat was led a few weeks ago by the New York Slimes when it was determined the success of the surge could not be ‘negatively controlled’.
The emphasis has been short circuited to the failings of the Iraqi government to meet milestones, as if the milestones were fixed and un movable dates to which failure to meet 100% of a ‘goal’would render GW Bush and the surge .... failures.

[Badeye]

Yep, he’ll get what he wants on Iraq, the Democrats will focus on the political logjam in Baghdad and not note the irony....(chuckle)

[COgamer]

Of course he’ll get his way... Troops remaining in Iraq make a lot of people angry. The Democrats WANT those people angry.