Sponsored Content
« Surprise: Hillary Clinton Plans to Accept Secretary of State Job Offer | Main | How Obama Got Elected »
November 17, 2008

Gen. McCaffrey's Latest AAR from Iraq

Is Obama really prepared to deliberately lose a war almost entirely won?

We'll see. Fortunately, he has the nuance of thought allowing him to repudiate almost every prior position.


. THE BOTTOM LINE:

a. The United States is now clearly in the end game in Iraq to successfully achieve what should be our principle objectives:

• The withdrawal of the majority of our US ground combat forces in Iraq in the coming 36 months.

• Leaving behind an operative civil state and effective Iraqi security forces.

• An Iraqi state which is not in open civil war among the Shia, the Sunnis, and the Kurds.

• And an Iraqi nation which is not at war with its six neighboring states.

b. The security situation is clearly still subject to sudden outrage at any moment by Al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI) or to degradation because of provocative behavior by the Maliki government. However, the bottom line is a dramatic and growing momentum for economic and security stability which is unlikely to be reversible. I would not characterize the situation as fragile. It is just beyond the tipping point.

• Daily attacks hit a high of 180+ in July of 2007--- they are now down to 20+ per day.

• Civilian deaths dropped from 3700 per month in Dec 2006 --- to 400 + in October 2008.

• US military deaths dropped from 110 in May of 2007---to 10 in October 2008.

• Iraqi Security Forces KIA dropped from 310 in June 2007--- to 50 in October 2008.)

[UPDATE-PA] Link to the whole West Point memo (PDF format). I'd been working up a post on this and was going to cite the original source, but Ace beat me to it, so here's the original.


digg this
posted by Ace at 08:48 PM

| Access Comments




Recent Comments
JackStraw : ">>Ted Kaczynski, the Unabomber, found dead in his ..."

Ciampino - I used to like origami as a hobby But I gave up as it was a lot of paperwork: "134 Skip what is 1%15 charcoal? ..."

Nevergiveup: " NGU, not the one that is going off at 40 to one. ..."

JTB: "127 ... "I bet my CW is slower than yours" (Ann ..."

Mike Hammer, etc., etc.: " I bet my CW is slower than yours! Posted by: gp ..."

Bob, at the NSA: "So easy enough if weight out ingredients right, 75 ..."

Ben Had: "NGU, not the one that is going off at 40 to one. ..."

Al Gore, noted author of 'Earth in the Balance': " Ted Kaczynski, the Unabomber, found dead in his ..."

Skip: "So easy enough if weight out ingredients right, 75 ..."

Nevergiveup: "Watching the Belmont Anyone have tips? Who's the ..."

Ben Had: "Bulg, alas the NoVaMoMe is on my list to be fill ..."

olddog in mo: "Even just for display. Seen fake, I mean, repro Cr ..."

Recent Entries
Search


Polls! Polls! Polls!
Frequently Asked Questions
The (Almost) Complete Paul Anka Integrity Kick
Top Top Tens
Greatest Hitjobs

The Ace of Spades HQ Sex-for-Money Skankathon
A D&D Guide to the Democratic Candidates
Margaret Cho: Just Not Funny
More Margaret Cho Abuse
Margaret Cho: Still Not Funny
Iraqi Prisoner Claims He Was Raped... By Woman
Wonkette Announces "Morning Zoo" Format
John Kerry's "Plan" Causes Surrender of Moqtada al-Sadr's Militia
World Muslim Leaders Apologize for Nick Berg's Beheading
Michael Moore Goes on Lunchtime Manhattan Death-Spree
Milestone: Oliver Willis Posts 400th "Fake News Article" Referencing Britney Spears
Liberal Economists Rue a "New Decade of Greed"
Artificial Insouciance: Maureen Dowd's Word Processor Revolts Against Her Numbing Imbecility
Intelligence Officials Eye Blogs for Tips
They Done Found Us Out, Cletus: Intrepid Internet Detective Figures Out Our Master Plan
Shock: Josh Marshall Almost Mentions Sarin Discovery in Iraq
Leather-Clad Biker Freaks Terrorize Australian Town
When Clinton Was President, Torture Was Cool
What Wonkette Means When She Explains What Tina Brown Means
Wonkette's Stand-Up Act
Wankette HQ Gay-Rumors Du Jour
Here's What's Bugging Me: Goose and Slider
My Own Micah Wright Style Confession of Dishonesty
Outraged "Conservatives" React to the FMA
An On-Line Impression of Dennis Miller Having Sex with a Kodiak Bear
The Story the Rightwing Media Refuses to Report!
Our Lunch with David "Glengarry Glen Ross" Mamet
The House of Love: Paul Krugman
A Michael Moore Mystery (TM)
The Dowd-O-Matic!
Liberal Consistency and Other Myths
Kepler's Laws of Liberal Media Bias
John Kerry-- The Splunge! Candidate
"Divisive" Politics & "Attacks on Patriotism" (very long)
The Donkey ("The Raven" parody)
Powered by
Movable Type 2.64