This, after all, is Time. There had to be a nod to defeatism in there somewhere. The character of the claim "lone fighter" is itself ludicrous unless they have something up their sleeve to undermine the major coalition players (Britain, Australia) and even then we could still beat their pants off, it just would take longer. Sheriff Bush isn't there alone, he's got a posse.
Many media types are making the mistake of inadvertently building up Bush by disparaging him in so many ways. If he succeeds despite their bad-mouthing, his stature will grow even higher. They should be toning down their silly rhetoric. Otherwise, they will be made to feel really small.