Positive Steps in Iraq Spell Disaster for Democrats

Somali Net, May 14th: Afghanistan: 55 Taliban militants killed in east

I thought this should be noted because I hadn't seen it reported anywhere in the mainstream news. Perhaps I just missed it.

However, major media outlets are getting it right on occasion. For example, Hot Air noted that CNN, Reuters, Time, and other new organizations are talking about the success in Anbar, and warning of a hurried U.S. exit from Iraq. Pat Dollard goes further, citing Diyala is the new Anbar and elaborates further:

Petraeus has a three pronged agenda, whether he knows it or not, and I’m sure he does. 1. Hold Al Anbar. 2. Defeat Al Qaeda in it’s last possible home in Iraq, the Triangle of Death/Diyala areas, by simultaneously attacking them aggressively and winning over the local Sunni tribes to help us in that effort - - just as we did in Al Anbar. 3. Break the back of the Shiite/Iran Baghdad to Basra insurgency by maintaining a ruthless military campaign; by further marginalizing or killing Al Sadr; by co-opting as many Shiite tribal leaders as possible; and by forcing Maliki to appropriately support us in all this; and lastly by rooting out as much evidence as possible to finalize the case against Iran.

Of course, it also was major news this week that Mullah Dadullah, the Taliban's foremost operational commander, was killed in Afghanistan. And we learn today from CounterTerrorism Blog that the Dead Taliban Leader Was Training U.S. Recruits:

"We will be executing attacks in Britain and the U.S. to demonstrate our sincerity," he explained in Pashto, "to destroy their cities as they have destroyed our cities." A senior U.S. official told the Blotter on ABCNews.com that recent intelligence reports confirmed Dadullah's claim that U.S. citizens were being trained in Taliban and al Qaeda camps. "The number is small, not large, but even once is dangerous," the official said.

Meanwhile, as Islamic terrorists organize Americans overseas to launch attacks here at home, Muslim YouTubers Unite to Promote Religion.

Most surprisingly, despite the perception here at home that we are losing the war in Iraq (which is hardly even debated in the media, unfortunately), the President's approval ratings are greater than that of Congress.

It seems a disillusioned, ambivalent American public has more faith in a President who showed contrition of late, and changed his military tactics, rather than a Congress which has failed to deliver any of the promised reforms it was elected to power to pass.

What will the Democratic presidential candidates run on if Iraq turns around, and the Democratic Congress fails to pass the legislation it has promised? They will then truly be the party of defeat.