Posted on 09/10/2007 9:47:42 AM PDT by rightinthemiddle
Petraeus set to testify as pressures mount
WASHINGTON - As General David H. Petraeus, the top US commander in Iraq, prepared to report to Congress today on gains made by the surge of 30,000 additional US troops in Iraq, two national polls released yesterday indicated that a majority of Americans believe the increased US troop presence has failed to deliver significant improvements in the war-torn country. The polls are troubling signs for the Bush administration's intensifying efforts to keep up American support for a large-scale troop presence in Iraq.
Petraeus and Ryan Crocker, the US ambassador to Iraq, are slated to testify before four Congressional committees today and tomorrow. They are widely expected to report limited political progress in Iraq, but some significant military gains, including a reduction in sectarian violence and a new partnership with Sunni Muslim groups to fight Al Qaeda in Iraq forces in Anbar Province. Later this week, President Bush will announce his plans for the US military in Iraq.
Even before the week of high-stakes testimony begins, the report by Petraeus and Crocker has been the subject of a full-throttle public relations battle, as the administration and its supporters seek to turn the tide of US public opinion about the war, while those favoring a pullout seek to raise doubts about Petraeus's assessment.
Moveon.org, a liberal group that opposes the war, will run an ad today in The New York Times that asks: "General Petraeus or General Betray Us?" The ad suggests that Petraeus is "cooking the books for the White House" by overstating progress there.
(Excerpt) Read more at boston.com ...
Since nobody has a freaking clue what “victory” means, that question is meaningless.
Publish a poll one news cycle before a story will break in an attempt to shift perception and opinion.
In the past it’s been state sale taxes on service, gay marriage or some other pet liberal cause.
As for leaving Iraq forget about it. We will never abandon the Iraqis.
And please, don't use the words president and Hillary in the same sentence.
“Senator Arlen Specter, a Pennsylvania Republican, told CNN’s “Late Edition” that he has an open mind about the report.”
Arelen Spector has such an open mind that his brains have fallen out.
I would no sooner trust a poll commissioned by the Washington (Com)Post or the New York Slimes than I would a promise by the North Koreans or the Iranians.
The pro-Iraqi War forces should run an advertisement with two photos - one of General Petraeus and one of that fat, unshaved, unkempt maggot Michael Moore with the caption
“Who would YOU trust?”
Polls mean nothing since there have been almost nothing be negative stories about surge in the press for the last two weeks. What else are readers of newpapers and magazines or consumers of the electronic press supposed to say, since that’s all they’ve heard?
(Can we bring back Dueling? Just for a year or so, that would do it.)
They may be turned against the Al quada. But, I just saw a poll that says the majority of the Iraqi people believe it is all right to attack coalition forces. There are limits to my wilingness to not abandon. Sorry!
Another Day, Another Poll, Another Disappointment for the Anti-War Left
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