Gen. David Petraeus begins his testimony to Congress today (Sept. 10, 2007) on the results of the "surge" in U.S. troops in Iraq. Supporters of the war have been using this anticipated report from Petraeus as an excuse for continuing the war, claiming no change in policy could even be discussed until we knew whether the surge is working.
Before getting the White House spin on the war (the White House previously has said it will produce the written report this month, not Petraeus), take a look at what others are saying about how well the surge has gone.
Josh Marshall of Talking Points Memo notes that Bush Administration officials won't even say how they arrived at numbers showing a decline in civilian deaths in Iraq.
And Juan Cole, a University of Michigan professor of Middle Eastern history, has highlighted on his Informed Comment blog a McClatchy News Service article on civilian deaths and other statistics that undermines the administration view of the surge.
So armed with that information, we will all wait with baited breath to hear what Rep. Mike Rogers has to say about the surge, in the same way that he has waited all summer for the Petraeus report before budging on his position on the war. He's already called the surge a mistake but says we should stick with it. And he's said that we've turned the corner militarily, but not politically.
So what now? If Petraeus and the White House say the surge is succeeding, does Rogers have to admit he was wrong? If they say it's not succeeding, what is he waiting for now? The American people have made up their minds about this war. Too bad a supposed leader like Rogers won't listen to them.
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