CAN"T WAIT TO SEE HOW THE PEGBBOT SPINS THIS:
YOUR HERO MURTHA SAYS THE SURGE IS WORKING
LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLO
Dems on Iraq: Now What? (Updates)
Posted by: McQ
Congressional Democrats risk looking like obstructionists on Iraq now that one of the staunchest anti-war critics in the House has declared "the surge is working".
Rep. John Murtha (D-Pa.), one of the leading anti-war voices in the House Democratic Caucus, is back from a trip to Iraq and he now says the "surge is working." This could be a huge problem for Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and other Democratic leaders, who are blocking approval of the full $200 billion being sought by President Bush for combat operations in Iraq in 2008.
Murtha's latest comments are also a stark reversal from what he said earlier in the year. The Pennsylvania Democrat, who chairs the powerful Defense subcommittee on the House Appropriations Committee, has previously stated that the surge "is not working" and the United States faced a military disaster in Iraq.
In fact, as you recall, he took Ken Pollack and Michael O'Hanlon to task for saying it was working earlier in the year calling their assessment "an illusion" and making a point of the fact that they only spent 7 days there. Murtha's most recent trip was only 4 days, yet apparently it was enough for him to decide that the surge is working.
Even more to the point, he said this on June 3rd of this year, when Phase II of the surge (the kinetic portion) hadn't even begun:
"They [the White House] keep saying the news media is being negative," Murtha said. "They keep making excuses for the lack of progress. I've been hearing this month after month and I'm absolutely convinced right now the surge isn't working and I'm convinced that if they don't pay attention to what I'm saying and a lot of other members of Congress are saying they're going to have a disaster on their hands because the American public want the troops out of Iraq."
Given the progress he now admits, it seems a good thing they didn't listen to him. And it puts he and the Democratic leadership in Congress in a very tough position.
But Pelosi, who is scheduled to speak to a Democratic National Committee event in Virginia on Friday, will surely face tough questions from reporters regarding Murtha's statement on the surge.
"This could be a real headache for us," said one top House Democratic aide, speaking on the condition of anonymity. "Pelosi is going to be furious."
I'm sure. Because, you know, progress in Iraq would be a bad thing for Democrats, wouldn't it? Recall what Democratic Rep Jim Clyburn said earlier this year when talking about the report Gen Petreus was about to give to Congress. He said that a positive report would be "a real big problem for us." And now, with Murtha's pronouncement and the polls showing more and more Americans are beginning to believe progress is being made in Iraq, the Democratic leadership has a real dilemma on their hands.
The most interesting aspect of this admission by Murtha will be the reaction of the Leftosphere. The first shot has been fired by HuffPo:
Compromising and capitulating are the only things the Democrats have been doing on this issue. Murtha's statement implies that some sort of deal can be reached with the Republicans in which a somewhat extended troop withdrawal timetable will be agreed upon. During his press conference, Murtha suggested that might be something like a two year calendar.
And, as you can tell, they're not happy.
UPDATE: The expected happens. From Republican Whip Roy Blunt:
"With one of the Democrats' leading war critics now saying the surge in Iraq is working, it's difficult to understand why the majority continues to push an irresponsible withdrawal plan that jeopardizes critical support funding for our troops. It can't be the facts on the ground that are influencing their decision-making: After all, our servicemen and women have made tremendous progress the past six months, with fewer attacks on our troops, greater security in historically insecure areas, and terrorist insurgents on the run.
"The stakes are too high for this Congress to remain idle on this critical funding bill. The Pentagon has continued to make clear the ongoing Democrats' stranglehold over resources will force it to lay off staff, cut operations, and pare back the budgets of other departments. It's time for the majority to stop playing games and deliver a well-deserved gift in time for Christmas to our men and women in uniform: a clean supplemental funding bill."
Can't wait for the reaction to that.
UPDATE II: Methinks Speaker Pelosi and Congressman Murtha may have had a little conversation since Murtha first claimed "the surge is working":
On Friday, however, Murtha's office moved to clarify his seemingly positive take on the surge, this time putting it in the context of renewed criticism of the administration.
"The military surge has created a window of opportunity for the Iraqi government," Murtha's statement read. "Unfortunately, the sacrifice of our troops has not been met by the Iraqi government and they have failed to capitalize on the political and diplomatic steps that the surge was designed to provide.
"The fact remains that the war in Iraq cannot be won militarily, and that we must begin an orderly redeployment of U.S. forces from Iraq as soon as practicable."
*thunk, thunk*
Sound like hollow rhetoric to you?
