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Politics : Politics for Pros- moderated -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Triffin who wrote (257436)	7/10/2008 4:33:36 PM
From: LindyBill	Respond to of 793963

Lot's of good stories, Triff. But why bother? You and the rest of the left won't give then any credit. Your "Bush derangement syndrome" has all of you too tied up.

To: Triffin who wrote (257436)	7/10/2008 5:24:20 PM
From: LindyBill	Respond to of 793963

Big three networks hide the ball on political progress in Iraq POWERLINE A week ago, I noted that the Washington Post had reported, grudgingly and on page 8, that in the judgment of the U.S. embassy in Baghdad, the Iraqi government has met 15 of the 18 benchmarks set by the U.S. Congress for measuring political progress in Iraq. This is almost twice the number of benchmarks deemed satisfied a year ago. Our government's assessment, moreover, was corroborated by the decision of the largest Sunni political bloc (also noted by the Post on page 8) to rejoin the Iraqi government. The Post's decision to relegate this powerful evidence of progress in Iraq to the deep in side its news section stands in contrast to its decision the following day to make a front-page story out of our "troop shortage" in Afghanistan. It also stands in contrast to its longstanding pattern of highlighting bad news from Iraq. But the Post was downright gushy about progress in Iraq compared to the three broadcast networks. In fact, as the Media Research Center points out, none of them saw fit to mention the significant increase in the number of benchmarks deemed satisfied by the embassy and by the administration in its report to Congress. During the entire week, NBC was the only network that put the words "Iraq" and "progress" together. It did so in an item on the Today Show of July 4 about optimism on the part of American soldiers in Iraq. The networks' decision not to cover the fulfillment of nearly all of the benchmarks for political progress in Iraq earned them the Media Research Center's "Worst of the Week" award. The mainstream media likes to tout its access to the "reality on the ground" in Iraq, a reality it claims the Bush administration has attempted to hide. In doing so, the MSM has exaggerated the scope of its first-hand coverage of Iraq. For example, a friend who spent half a year serving in Anbar province told me the only U.S. reporter he saw during that entire time was Oliver North. Nor, from what I understand, was the American MSM conspicuous in Basra during the recent fighting there. In any event, the MSM's access constitutes an asset for news consumers only to the extent it is willing even-handedly to report both good news and bad. This is a test the MSM, and especially the broadcast networks, continues to fail.

To: Triffin who wrote (257436)	7/10/2008 5:27:23 PM
From: Brumar89	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 793963

U.S. General: Iraqi Forces to Be Fully Ready in '09 Sounds pretty good to me. Lt. General James P. Dubik, pauses in this Wednesday, Nov. 3, 2004 file photo, during a promotion ceremony at Fort Lewis, Wash. (Ted S. Warren - AP) By Ann Scott Tyson and Dan Eggen Washington Post Staff Writers Thursday, July 10, 2008; Page A11 Iraq's army and police will be fully manned and operational by mid-2009, possibly as early as April, the top U.S. general in charge of building Iraqi security forces said yesterday, signaling the prospect that Iraqi forces could assume primary combat responsibilities in the country while U.S. troops shift to a supporting role. Asked when Iraqi ground forces could handle security so U.S. troops would not have to, Lt. Gen. James Dubik told lawmakers on Capitol Hill that the strength of Iraq's ground forces had grown significantly. "The ground forces will mostly be done by middle of next year; their divisions, brigades and battalions are on a good timeline," Dubik said in testimony before the House Armed Services Committee. "Could be as early as April. Could be as late as August," said Dubik, who until last week led the effort to train Iraqi forces. While U.S. commanders' predictions on Iraqi security forces have proven excessively optimistic in the past, the general's assessment is central to the debates in Washington and Baghdad over a timeline for when Iraqi forces can take charge of security, allowing the bulk of the approximately 140,000 U.S. troops in Iraq to withdraw. Dubik's projection came as Iraqi leaders this week pressed for a firm timetable for the departure of U.S. troops as part of a long-term security agreement the two countries are negotiating. Iraqi spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said in Baghdad on Wednesday that a U.S. pullout could be completed in several years. "It can be 2011 or 2012," he said. "We don't have a specific date in mind, but we need to agree on the principle of setting a deadline." The White House said yesterday that while the administration remains opposed to "arbitrary" timetables for withdrawal, it is considering whether to agree to a long-term goal for U.S. troops to leave Iraq depending on security conditions. "We'd like to have a date that we can reach for as a goal when coalition forces can make this transition, but it should be based on ground conditions," said White House spokesman Tony Fratto. "Our negotiators have been able to discuss general time horizons and goals like that." ........ Iraqis are "handling much of their security today," Dubik said, noting that nine of 18 Iraqi provinces are under Iraqi government control, with little involvement of U.S. troops. "That movement toward their responsibility will continue," he said. Of the more than 140 Iraqi battalions, he said 12 are capable of independent operations and rated at the highest level of readiness, while 90 others are rated at the second highest level and are "fighting well." As a result, the U.S. military effort is shifting from combat to providing intelligence, air power, command and control, artillery and other support that will likely be needed long after its combat role diminishes. Dubik estimated it may take until 2012 to develop the Iraqi air force and navy and establish border security. ....... washingtonpost.com