Andrea Mitchell interviews General Petraeus.
The General wastes no time in making his positions crystal clear..now only if the media would listen.

While the Democrats attempt to jockey for position to take credit for us “winning” in Iraq, (we all know it had to be that pressure they put on the President), their steady drumbeat [...]

My bet is Congressman Murtha will go into hiding over the next few days.
After all, he won’t want to be questioned again about why yet another Marine’s charges have been dropped in relation to Haditha.
Charges against the Battalion Commander of the Haditha Marines have been dropped.
While it remains to be seen if the [...]

Imagine spending your time (all your time) no more than 15 feet apart from your significant other:
Did you hear about that Buddhist couple who’re never more than 15 feet apart? Well, we tried it.
HT: Instapundit
Simon says:
A real shame exports are growing at a rate of about 2.8% a year. It is a [...]

Senator Lieberman, much like President Bush is a man I admire for his courage to follow his convictions even in the face of abandonment of his party.
Once again the Senator delivers remarks to Generals Petraeus and Odierno which only serve to reinforce my feeling toward him as an American first, Senator second:

The Senator’s remarks coupled [...]

If there are lingering questions about that “Mission Accomplished” banner aboard the USS Lincoln the day of President Bush’s speech for which it was a backdrop, this may help clear up the confusion:
Via Seamus, comes this email from a Navy Lieutenant who was aboard the USS Lincoln during the visit from President Bush. Yesterday [...]

The usual Friday-Fly By will be pre-empted this week by a reading of Michael Yon’s, “Moment of Truth in Iraq.”
Due to the generosity of a very dear friend, I received my autographed copy yesterday afternoon. It was a long wait until free time late last evening allowed me to begin what I knew would [...]

A new dispatch has been posted from Michael Yon. It is chock full of terrific information and photos as usual.
The final paragraph in this piece captured my attention. Because of the trust I have in Yon’s feelings and observations this gives me hope that we may be nearing a light at the end [...]

It is no secret that there have been countless documents, tapes etc. recovered since Saddam Hussein was deposed, some of which are now being released for public consumption.
Judge for yourself after reading this article if the world is not a better place without this tyrant in a position of power:
The Americans captured more than 600,000 [...]

If this report is accurate then one has to wonder for how long Al-Sadr has understood that neither his power grab or his militia would never have been successful in Iraq:
The leader of the Shi’ite Sadrists in Iraq, Muqtada Al-Sadr, has announced in a letter to his followers that he is stepping down from his [...]

Greyhawk has listened to the pleadings of his wife and those in their comment section at Mudville Gazette and completed a version of “The Free and the Brave” in which the audio is much clearer than his initial attempt. (For those who still have a bit of difficulty with the lyrics, they are posted below [...]

A must read “Letter to the Candidates” from Sgt. Hook.
HT:Lone Wolf at Blackfive where he writes:
Sgt. Hook has a Letter to the Candidates that should go to every politician, not just those running. It is well worth reading, and well worth sharing. It also echoes a message that I was asked to send by multiple [...]

It has never been my choice to debate the Iraq war with most. Each individual has their own thoughts as to whether or not we should have gone to Iraq initially, or how the battles both in Iraq and Afghanistan have been commanded.
I have always believed that once we have troops committed [...]

Even though John Murtha is trying to backtrack on his comment that the surge is working in order to get back into the good graces of his mentor, Nancy Pelosi, he said those words.
Harry Reid, on the other hand, will not admit the light at the end of the tunnel may not be a train. [...]

…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’ [...]

There are citizens in Iraq who are grateful to America:
The Iraqis asked me to convey a message of thanks to the American people. ” Thank you, thank you,” the people were saying. One man said, “Thank you for peace.” Another man, a Muslim, said “All the people, all the people in Iraq, Muslim and Christian, [...]

This Washington Post article says some military authorities are suggesting we declare victory over Al Qaeda in Iraq.
Others, including Admiral Fallon, head of CentCom and Gen. Petraeus think it would be a mistake to do so.
The U.S. military believes it has dealt devastating and perhaps irreversible blows to al-Qaeda in Iraq in recent months, leading [...]

According to an anonymous source in this article the United States will admit 12,000 Iraqi refugees by this time next year.
“Our plans for FY (fiscal year) 2008 include processing enough Iraqi refugees to admit 12,000 during the fiscal year,” which began Monday, the US official said on condition of anonymity.
The official’s comments came as [...]

On several occasions we have posted links to the work of civilian embeds who travel with our troops in Iraq. I have a great deal of admiration for these individuals, as they are risking their own lives and existing in the same difficult conditions as our military on a daily basis.
The good [...]

I will attempt to transcribe the President’s address to the nation made this evening.
President Bush:
Good evening.
In the life of all free nations there come moments that decide the direction of a country and reveal the character of its people.
We are now at such a moment. In Iraq, an ally of the [...]

After the Petraeus report it seems the Congressional Democrats’ hope for Republican defections to order a quick withdrawal from Iraq is going to end up in frustration again.
Senate Republicans, bolstered by Army Gen. David H. Petraeus’ war report this week, are closing ranks and say Democrats will continue to fall far shy of the votes [...]

26,000 U.S. and Iraqi troops are on a new offensive in the Nineveh area of Iraq.
About 26,000 U.S. and Iraqi forces are taking part in an offensive against al Qaeda in Iraq in northern Iraq, the U.S. military said on Thursday.
Iraqis gather at the site of a U.S. airstrike on Baghdad Thursday. Residents said people [...]

*Updated and bumped to include this video of President Bush’s remarks.

Good for him. At least he goes over there to see how things are going by talking to the commanders and troops on the ground.
AL-ASAD AIR BASE, Iraq (AP) - President Bush made a surprise visit to Iraq on Monday, using the war zone [...]

Unnamed sources have told the AP the GAO will give a mostly negative report about the progress made by the Iraqi government in the benchmarks set by Washington in January.
WASHINGTON — Congressional auditors have determined that the Iraqi government has failed to meet the vast majority of political and military goals laid out [...]

I’m cautiously optimistic about this report.
BAGHDAD — Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr has ordered a six-month suspension of activities by his Mahdi Army militia in order to reorganize the force, and it will no longer attack U.S. and coalition troops, aides said Wednesday.
The aide, Sheik Hazim al-Araji, said on Iraqi state television that the [...]

It appears the Iraqi government has accomplished more while in recess than our Congress has accomplished all year.
Iraq’s top Shi’ite, Sunni Arab and Kurdish political leaders announced on Sunday they had reached consensus on some key measures seen as vital to fostering national reconciliation.
The agreement by the five leaders was one of the most [...]

Let’s stop kidding ourselves. These people don’t want peace. Let’s pull out and let them have at it.
A new political accord between Iraq’s main Sunni Arab, Shi’ite and Kurdish leaders will not be enough to lure boycotting Sunni Arabs back into the government, a spokesman for the biggest Sunni Arab bloc said on Monday.
In [...]

Speaks for itself.
The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is expected to advise President Bush to reduce the U.S. force in Iraq next year by almost half, potentially creating a rift with top White House officials and other military commanders over the course of the war.
Administration and military officials say Marine Gen. Peter [...]

Some good news I hope.
Growing Sunni opposition to al Qaeda and in some cases the perception that U.S. troops will leave the country are key factors behind recent and growing stability in Iraq, according to a major U.S. intelligence report based on findings from 16 agencies.
The updated National Intelligence Estimate (NIE), a consensus view of [...]

I’m probably one of very few that doesn’t care what happens to Iraq once we leave so I’ll let this article speak for itself.
A stark assessment released Thursday by the nation’s intelligence agencies depicts a paralyzed Iraqi government unable to take advantage of the security gains achieved by the thousands of extra American troops [...]

Speaks for itself.
One of the Senate’s top Republicans has called on President Bush to start bringing U.S. troops home from Iraq by Christmas, telling reporters Thursday that a pullout was needed to spur Iraqi leaders to action.
Sen. John Warner, the influential former chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said he has recommended that [...]