"Coalition should have wiped him out when they had him"
One of many similar mistakes by our PC state dept.
Actually, that's one of the things that's been a thorn for the military. Much of leadership in the military care more about their careers instead of waging war on these savages. So many people, politicians and military brass alike, were SO eager to wage a war based on rules of engagement and not appear overly aggressive. Hence many little strategic miscalculations such as these (not getting sadr) added up over time and it's really nipped the U.S. military in the bud.
I'm reading a book now, 'Among Warriors in Iraq' by Mike Tucker. He rode along with various military units in Iraq, and one of the soldier's he interviews talk about how the Third I.D. did things wrong in Fallujah after the initial drive to baghdad was over. Soldier's were catching criminals and the brass was releasing them. They were told to stand down and do nothing while criminals looted and committed bold acts of crime. Right off the bat this gave the impression that the american forces were soft and things started to add up, and especially in an insurgent stronghold like fallujah, this was a grave miscalculation.
For all the rhetoric about how U.S. soldiers are bloodthirsty and trigger happy cowboys, the iraqis know that there isn't much the troops can do due to the ROE. To put it blunt the only true language these people know is fear.