McCain: "We are succeeding in Iraq. I'm not asking them to apologize because they were wrong."

[Amerigo Vespucci]

Sen. John McCain, the presumptive GOP presidential nominee, and the Democratic candidates are trading shots almost daily in what may be preview of the general election.

Most of the exchanges between McCain and the Democrats -- especially Obama -- have been over Iraq.

"We are succeeding in Iraq when Sen. Clinton and Sen. Obama said the military 'surge' wasn't working. They were wrong," McCain said Thursday at a town hall meeting in San Antonio, Texas, referring to the increase of troops into Iraq that President Bush authorized last year.

"So I'm not asking them to apologize because they were wrong, I'm just asking them to join with us and support this strategy."

http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/02/29/mccain.democrats/

[Skittles]

1. proof the man is delusional and therefore very dangerous

disgusting that this is the best the repukes could come up with

[Amerigo Vespucci]

2. Obviously inspired by Bush's recent "We are not in a recession" remarks...

...and the irony is that there will always be a group somewhere that buys it hook, line and sinker.

Whether McCain's group is larger than Bush's 19% will remain to be seen.

:patriot:

[malaise]

3. McLame is crazier than Bush if

that is possible. By the way I heard a newscast yesterday which said that Bush and McLame felt...that's their new spin...continuity.

[Skittles]

6. sometimes I wonder if he actually believes his own garbage

or if, like bush, the man is psychologically incapable of admitting he was wrong

[NewJeffCT]

11. the problem with that is

the media agree with McCain that the Surge has been a smashing success.

[HughBeaumont]

4. I'm thinking that towing the party line is probably not the best way to go.

It could lead him to an ass-end of a 55-45.

Then again, I never thought the Dumberican people would prefer a Champagne Squadron business and political failure over actual combat veterans who volunteered to be targets either.

[anniebelle]

5. Hopefully, Americans have grown wiser and weary of

this type of idiotic rhetoric. Listening to C-Spin and reading my local rag of newspaper, I don't have a lot of hope. But, I'm in the buckle (butt hole, actually) of the bible belt and the people in my area are as delusional as this loony tune. My husband and I get hate mail in return for our letters to the editor, but so far, no one's come to my home. If you don't live in an area like this, you would not believe it.

[chelsea0011]

7. Invade/Occupy=Success.I get it. Cuba...watch out!

[kentuck]

8. What is his definition of "success"?

The country is united? They have a working democracy? The Sunnis and Shia and the Kurds are all working together? Their infrastructure has been rebuilt? They now have clean water and electricity all the time?

Or does his definition of "success" mean we are not losing as many "American" lives as last year? That our bribes of both sides has worked to perfection? That all we need to do to maintain this "success" is to keep 130,000 troops in Iraq forever and spend $200 billion per year on this blunder that he supported?

[NewJeffCT]

12. yes, that is McCain & the media's definition of success

the media has labeled the surge a success, and so therefore it is... facts be damned.

[JDPriestly]

9. Is that why Turkey has now also invaded Iraq?

If we are succeeding, why did Turkey need to send troops into the Kurdish region of Iraq?

[moondust]

10. Choking on his own bullshit.

McBush claims Obama and Clinton "did not believe the surge would work." That's bullshit. The splurge has not accomplished what it was designed to do and everbody knows it. Any school kid can tell you that if you flood the streets with cops the place will cool off under lockdown. Temporarily. The problem is what happens when the cops leave. They can't stay there forever.

Will the Sunnis keep extorting the U.S. for "peace money?" Will they keep demanding more? Can the U.S. afford to keep buying them off indefinitely? Are the Sunnis using all those dollars just to buy more and better weapons for the big bang that is likely to follow the cops' departure?

Where are all the refugees today? Is it still about 4 million? Can they really be expected to move back to the mixed neighborhoods where their family members were tortured and killed? If not then where?

Some tactical military successes do not a solution make. And that could easily be the extent of the so-called "success" for years to come.

Contrary to McBush's bullshit, al-Qaeda in Iraq is not going to take over the country. It is impossible to imagine that the Sunnis or the Shiites or the Kurds, all fighting for their own autonomy and control of as much as they can get, would ever allow that to happen.