You Know Things Must Be Going Better In Iraq When…
…John Murtha says the surge is working.
U.S. Rep. John Murtha today said he saw signs of military progress during a brief trip to Iraq last week, but he warned that Iraqis need to play a larger role in providing their own security and the Bush administration still must develop an exit strategy.
“I think the ’surge’ is working,” the Democrat said in a videoconference from his Johnstown office, describing the president’s decision to commit more than 20,000 additional combat troops this year. But the Iraqis “have got to take care of themselves.”
Violence has dropped significantly in recent months, but Mr. Murtha said he was most encouraged by changes in the once-volatile Anbar province, where locals have started working closely with U.S. forces to isolate insurgents linked to Al Qaeda.
He said Iraqis need to duplicate that success at the national level, but the central government in Baghdad is “dysfunctional.”
He should recognize a dysfunctional central government when he sees one. 
If only we could have gotten him to read Michael Yon’s posts and those of other milbloggers and folks on the scene, or if only he had listened to Gen. Petraeus instead of stuffing his ears with cotton plugs we could have spared the expense of sending him over to Iraq to tell us what we already know.
Of course the Iraqis have to take care of themselves and that’s what we are teaching them to do.
Boy! I’m impressed that Murtha is doing a 180, even if reluctantly. It’s kind of hard to deny success when it stares you in the face.
Written by ~J~
Aurora Says:
November 30th, 2007 at 7:44 amVisit Aurora
Wow, that’s great news, Jeanette. Still don’t trust the buzzard though. He’s obviously had that confession beaten the heck out of him.
Aurora Says:
November 30th, 2007 at 7:53 amVisit Aurora
Great news, Jeanette, but much as I hate to be a cynic, I don’t trust that buzzard, Murtha for one moment. On the plus side if he can see it, it’s got to be visible to others as well.
Sue Says:
November 30th, 2007 at 9:01 amVisit Sue
It’s not hard to deny success when you are now going to attempt to take credit for it. All of these Dems who have tried to cut funding, negotiate a loss for our troops and use talking points to turn the public against the administration are beginning to see that we are winning.
Now what to do…make it look like it is because of their tactics that the President will bring troops home and in due time there will be stability in Iraq.
Murtha, Pelosi and Reid..the worst of the bunch. Michael Yon and those like him would have no appeal as their work would not suit the agenda of those who put politics above the well being of not only our troops but our citizens.