Yes…that is why we have republicans. No, I’m being stereotypical. Though, I feel when viewing proclaimed republicans argue versus proclaimed democrats argue, it seems to be republicans tend to be more slanderous and focused on a single point which in itself may prove a point but not so much when viewed on the whole amongst the many other factors that may play into a particular situation. Granted though I’ve seen this from dems too, just particularly seems to be a republican thing. I would have to say there is a lot of cognitive dissonance involved.

But Obama brought it upon himself by making a hash of his position in light of the demonstrable fact that the surge has at least for now improved the outlook for Iraq. Obama’s willful opaqueness on this point makes him look like, at best, a petulant douche.

McCain, though, ought to be careful about his current triumphalism. Circumstances could make him look like Bush circa “mission accomplished.” Here’s why:

When Bush speechified in front of the “accomplished” banner, he was simply marking the end of the first and easiest phase of our involvement, namely the invasion phase. Now, McCain is signaling something like a declaration of victory in the much harder 2nd phase, that of bringing about something resembling a fitful peace and a rudimentary functioning government backed by our substantial economic and military propping.

What’s nascent now is the 3rd and by far hardest phase, the pulling out, or the “tossing the fledgling from the nest” phase. Or the “keep it up without our propping” phase.

I’ve got news for McCain and the rest of the “failure is not an option” crowd. The general public is not going to have much patience for taking out 20k and then sending back 10k, taking out 15k and then sending back 25k, and so on. Withdrawal needs to be pretty much a one-way street, IMO. And the clock is ticking whether John McCain likes it or not, due to domestic opinion both here and in Iraq.

McCain is acting like we suddenly have a 3 run lead after 8 innings. It’s more like we have a 1 run lead in the sixth but our starter is tiring and just walked the first guy to start the inning. In other words, the US is the starter, and we’re at 90-something pitches. We can make it through a few more batters, maybe with luck finish the 7th inning and keep our lead,

But we’re about cooked. The outcome of the game is going to depend on the bullpen, and we’re NOT the bullpen. Iraqis are the bullpen. “It’s up to the rookie!”

New Word Of The Day: “Scurrilous”, H/T To Bill O’Reilly? NOPE — This One Coming From Time Magazine
When I gravitated toward MemeOrandum today to see what news was teasing my fellow political bloggers into a frenzy, I noted ther…

l[Obama] really doesn’t care about a successful outcome there. He simply wants us out – regardless. He’ll mouth the platitudes about honoring our military’s sacrifice, but bottom line, he’s going to pull us out of there regardless of the advice he gets from generals or the conditions there at the time – and it has to do with politics and the presidency.

Its true – wouldn’t an unconditional pullout at the peak of insurgent violence have resulted in a loss? Obama says “I don’t know” to Katie Couric, which really means “I don’t care” considering what he does know now about the success of the surge, and yet he claims he still would have opposed it.